Leon County Schools are back in session next week and the district is putting a focus on safety. Superintendent Jackie Pons spoke with reporters Monday about what to expect when classes resume.
There are already school resource officers in middle and high school’s throughout the county, but the Leon County School Board plans to fund eight new officers for elementary schools. The addition of those officers would put the ratio of police to elementary schools in Leon County at 2:1.
“This was talked about at the school board meeting, the last meeting. It was something we felt, with what’s going on in the world today, and the uncertain times we share, we want to do everything we can to protect our children and keep our children safe.," Leon School Superintendent Jackie Pons told reporters Monday.
In addition to new officers in elementary schools, the district is also making a big push toward its anti-bullying campaign. That includes a close monitoring of social media accounts. Last year, the district received a report of a threat against a school made online. Pons says the issue poses a legal gray area, but notes the district does not actively monitor student social media accounts:
“One of the issues last year when we closed Lincoln for the day, I got a call late at night from a parent and I was notified by a student about a social media post, on Facebook, that something was up," he said. "When they put it up, it comes back to us usually. And I don’t say we get all of them, but we get a lot of them.”
Going along with that "see something, say something," perspective the district also has an app where people can report bullying and threats anonymously. And Pons also says he wants students to sign anti-bullying pledges this year.
“This year we also begin an initiative with every student to sign a contract promising they’ll report incidents of bullying, that they promise to participate and conduct themselves in anti-bullying programs, and that they’ll take leadership on this. Again, most of the problems that are prevented come through the leadership of our students. They’re very powerful ambassadors when it comes to bullying and school safety.”
One group especially at-risk of being bullied are transgender students. A directive from the Obama Administration calls for allowing students to use the restrooms that correspond to the genders they identify with. Leon County Schools ran into the issue last year when a gender-neutral middle schooler was asked to change clothes after wearing a dress to school. Pons says the district’s schools now make decisions on a case-by-case basis.
“Each school has an individual plan to meet the need of the student or any other students. And that’s how we’ve been dealing with it for 10 years. Some schools are equipped in different ways because of facilities. But they have a way to meet that need and have been doing so for 10 years. That’s not a problem for Leon County Schools," he said.
Some schools already have gender neutral bathrooms, while others don’t, and that there is no district-wide policy on the issue. The first day of classes begin on August 15 for Leon County.
