Drugs in schools | catalyst-chicago.org

Drugs in schools | catalyst-chicago.org:

Drugs in schools

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SUMMER 2014

Most drug violations in CPS involve an ounce or less of marijuana. Schools are quick to call police, yet rarely have the resources to offer education, counseling or other non-punitive help to students.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Quick to punish Sarah Karp Cory Warren and a group of his classmates at Phillips Academy High School had a challenge: Work with a community organization to try to convince their peers that drinking and taking drugs are bad ideas.  Alcohol and drug abuse are virtually never talked about in Chicago Public Schools, even in high schools, he says. Yet teens can be especially susceptible to peer pressure to drink and do drugs, and the consequences for drug-related offenses in CPS can be severe. “I think in elementary school they told us not to smoke squares (slang for cigarettes), but no one said anything... school arrests, school discipline, suspensions and expulsions > READ MORE

Life after being arrested at school Sarah Karp It is a week and a half before school lets out for the summer, and though the weather is on the cool side, children are on the playground of Little Village Elementary School, shouting and running in the late afternoon.  Anthony Martinez slides into the basement of an old building on the corner across the street. Several teenaged boys are slouched on a worn, weathered couch, playing video games in the dim light. Others are shooting pool. The young men are here as part of Urban Life Skills, a diversion program that allows young offenders to avoid... school arrests, school discipline, suspensions and expulsions > READ MORE

Threatened with expulsion Sarah Karp In June, CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett heralded changes to the Student Code of Conduct that she said will reduce disparities in how school discipline is carried out and ultimately cut the number of suspensions and expulsions.  But Catalyst Chicago has discovered that officials slipped a loophole into the new code that will allow principals to request a transfer for a student who has been referred for expulsion—even without a hearing. Students would be transferred to a school for expelled or suspended students; effectively, the only... alternative schools, school arrests, school discipline, suspensions and expulsions > READ MORE

Letter From the Editor

Drug policy should focus on teaching, not punishment

By: Lorraine Forte

Jesus Velazquez got caught at school with a marijuana pipe in his backpack. What happened next is exactly what shouldn’t take place if a school district’s goal—or, from a larger perspective, a community’s goal—is to get kids who make dumb mistakes back on track. 

Jesus Velazquez got caught at school with a marijuana pipe in his backpack. What happened next is exactly what shouldn’t take place if a school district’s goal—or, from a larger perspective, a...

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