Why Students Should be Involved in Training their School Security Officers

In April 2009, myself and seven other students at Sayre High School trained our school security officers.  The reason why we did this all stemmed from a situation that took place back in September 2008 at my school.  The media called it a riot, but it all started with a miscommunication that escalated way beyond what it needed to be.

After the incident, my school’s climate got worse.  Students felt disrespected and relations between school security and students were at an all time low.  Students also felt like the truth of what happened wasn’t being portrayed at all.  The officers felt like they had to get us under control, and quickly.  They had to set an example and clamp down.  Afterward, listening to students, we felt like the whole incident could have been prevented.

We felt like students were being criminalized in the media.  So we met with students to talk about what our messages would be and what we wanted to come out of the whole thing.  What we put forward were two solutions:  A peer mentoring program and for students to be involved in training school security.  The idea behind the peer mentoring program was for older students to mentor younger students to help them better transition into high school.

The reason why we wanted students to be involved in training school security was that we were the ones who were being directly affected by how they do their jobs.  The attitudes we had toward each other were not healthy.  We wanted to make sure the riot never happened again.  We wanted to see eye to eye and not just have the idea that they were here to harass us or that we were here to disrespect them but that we could both learn from each other and we were both in this together.

As members of PSU we wanted to make sure that student voices were heard, not only about the incident, but also in finding a solution to the problem.  We felt that one of the solutions would be to train our officers so that things like this wouldn’t happen in the school.

In the process of organizing this campaign we had meetings with our school leadership, security officers, and the district’s office of safety.  We wanted to get everyone’s support for this idea and let them know that this could really help our school.  We also wanted to make sure that we understood the issues on both sides so it wasn’t just one side being heard and just one story being told, but that both sides could understand what each other were feeling.

It took support from James Golden, head of the Office of School Climate and Safety, and members of his office to help get the security guards on board, but once that happened, the time we had with them took them by surprise.  The guards might have been expecting us to tell them how to do their job better, but it was actually about listening to them and getting their perspective and sharing our views with them.

For the students that were involved, it made them get a sense of leadership and power, and pride that their voice could be heard in helping to solve these issues.  It also gave us a way to hear what the security felt and to hear them say that they do care about us.  Both parties felt disrespected, because conditions are sometimes out of the control of either side.  But both sides are being affected.  We learned that guards may have been taking out some of the stresses of their jobs on students, and they also might have been stereotyping all students based on the actions of some. 

Through our session with them, they really got to know a few students at the school, their interests, and what they think.  It gave them a different feeling of who we are, and created a relationship that got more personal.

The day after the student-led training, we immediately noticed a difference in our security guards.  They were acting more like role models and mentors.  Instead of yelling at students they would ask us to do things and explain when we didn’t understand.  A lot of the negative comments stopped.  In response, students started to act more respectful of the guards’ authority.  We recognized that the guards were doing their job and doing it in a more respectful way that we could appreciate.

Now we’re continuing our meetings to make sure that this is something that everyone across the district can experience because its not only an issue at Sayre, but at other schools as well.  Because it had such a positive impact I think other schools would benefit from it a lot, and it will help school climate become more positive and there will be a better learning experience and environment for everyone.   Expanding student-led solutions to climate and violence now will benefit all schools in terms of attendance, grades, and test scores.  Even more important, students and staff will be able to build their trust and communication, which will make everyone want to come to school. 

By Zakia Royster. This article originally appeared in Philadelphia Student Union's newsletter, The Union Rep. Download a pdf of the Spring 2010 issue.

Sharnell Barnett leads a group discussion about next steps in the Campaign for Nonviolent Schools, including plans to expand student led trainings of security guards to other neighborhood schools. Photo by Erika Almiron.