Police-in-schools was an effective program
Here is today’s lesson from the Toronto District School Board. Ignore the majority of voices surveyed, disregard the TDSB statement of missions and values about safety and community relationships, don’t wait around for planned research, forget the heavy lifting and take the easy way out. It might be funny if it was a Cheech and Chong laugh track. But alas, it isn’t. I’m talking about the TDSB decision to cancel an effective community based police-in-schools program.
Implemented after the 2008 murder of Jordan Manners at Toronto’s C.W. Jefferys Collegiate, this program was intended to enhance safety and security. It did much more. As noted in Rosie DiManno’s recent column, C.W. Jeffery’s principal lauded the positivity associated with the program and went on to say in no uncertain terms that there is a place for police in schools. He should know.
There is a good body of evidence to support the continuation of this program. First, a survey of students, staff and community members found majority support for this program. Most people felt safer. And data from year one indicated a significant statistical drop in arrests and suspensions during the school year.
That comes as no surprise to this writer. This is in line with the original Toronto police-in-schools program commenced in response to an explosion of youth violence in the late 1980s and early 90s. Newly formed “street crime units” commenced a police-school partnership eventually operating in most of the preamalgamation Toronto school boards.
The brainchild of then deputy chief William McCormack, the units provided both anti-violence education and enforcement, and most importantly, a tight connection between officers and schools. I was one of the original supervising detectives and saw firsthand how well it worked. But don’t take it from me. The federal government commissioned an in-depth research report authored by three academics, including much-lauded Toronto psychologist Dr. Fred Mathews. The results were impressive.
The 1993 report, titled “The Anti-Violence Community School,” showed a significant drop in formal interventions (arrests) as the partnership developed over time. Students and staff felt safer. Many students bonded with the partnered police officer, receiving advice and support. Officers often attended and participated in special school events. And, it wasn’t a “school to prisons” pipeline. Unfortunately after several years, this program, too, ended as a result of what I consider an ill-advised political decision by the then Toronto Police Services Board.
So, why reference this dated partnership? Well, the programs are similar in nature. The 1993 research showed positive results from police in schools. That suggests to me that similar unbiased and fact-based research today might have produced similar results. Ryerson University was contracted to do just that.
But research conducted by academics with conclusions based on information and evidence? No sir, not for the TDSB. Critical thinking and pedagogy this is not! I take comfort in the fact that the Catholic board didn’t follow suit.
So why did the TDSB cancel the program? Just 10 per cent of the surveyed students felt watched or uncomfortable. That was enough for the school board. In an opinion piece for the Star, TDSB chair Robin Pilkey wraps up her explanation in support of the decision by suggesting that “Toronto Police continue to respond quickly to threats to student, staff and school safety as they have always done — and done well.”
Of course they do. But does anybody really believe that busy primary response units going from call to call will be able to give the same service as officers permanently assigned to a collection of schools? I don’t.
I’m not suggesting the concerns expressed by the 10 per cent be dismissed. Why couldn’t working with and helping students who feel uncomfortable or intimidated by police presence, be what they call a “teachable moment” in the education profession? Instead, the board has taken the easy way out.
Mike McCormack, the president of the Toronto Police Association, said it best in a recent Star article. “Here’s an opportunity to look at that 10 per cent and say, ‘Why do you have these perceptions?’ ” I couldn’t agree more. In my opinion, bowing to pressure from Black Lives Matter and other activists, the TDSB has made a terrible decision that won’t soon be corrected. I can only hope educators make better decisions when a terrified student or a student who has been bullied or worse, takes that very long walk to the principal’s office desperate for real help.
Bowing to pressure from Black Lives Matter and other activists, the TDSB has made a terrible decision that won’t soon be corrected