Officials say fighting students are disciplined-when they're caught.
Last week, students at Santa Fe High were gripped by the sight of brains on pavement.
They weren't watching
Red Asphalt
in Driver's Ed or the latest slasher movie at the cinema. They were on campus, and the scene was the aftermath of an incident in which a 16-year-old student knocked a fellow 16-year-old student unconscious shortly after school let out April 21. After receiving the blow, the victim hit his head on the concrete, splitting it open. Police were called to the scene and subsequently arrested the student who delivered the blow for aggravated battery. His
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victim was hospitalized. Witnesses were traumatized-but only to an extent. Teachers and students alike say they've grown accustomed to violence on campus this year.
Besides Thursday's fight, "There was one on Monday and one on Tuesday," SFHS Sophomore Quin Ferguson says. Santa Fe High Science Teacher Anita Gerlach says she heard about three fights occurring in just one day last week.
In fact, according to the Santa Fe Police Department, incidents at both Santa Fe High and Capital High are only slightly higher than they were last year, although the number of aggravated batteries versus simple batteries is slightly higher at Santa Fe High.
SFHS Assistant Principal John Harnisch confirmed the school calls the police for violent incidents. Both he and Gloria Lopez, coordinator for student-parent services for Santa Fe Public Schools, say there are no more fights this year than last. Lopez works with students who have been suspended for fighting, but would not provide the number of incidents referred to her this school year, saying the amount of fights aren't tallied until school lets out for summer.
Santa Fe High students involved in fights are not always caught. According to Ferguson, students choose remote locations on campus to start their brawls to avoid getting caught. Gerlach adds that another reason students get away with fighting is because the administration has discouraged teachers from breaking up student feuds. By the time security arrives participants have often already fled. "Sometimes it's not possible to find out who did it," Harnisch acknowledges, "but if we can find out who did it, that person is disciplined."
As for last week's case of aggravated battery, Harnisch says, "Typically what happens is the person gets suspended from school. Often if it's severe or repeated [fighting], he will be suspended for 10 days, sent to a hearing at central office, and central office could suspend the student for the remainder of the term, of the year or expel the student."
Fighting at SFHS may not be limited to students fighting students. Both Gerlach and Ferguson cite instances of students getting physical with teachers. "A friend of mine was sent out of the class by a sub," Ferguson says. "When he came back, he grabbed [the sub's] arm and started twisting it. That sub never came back."
In another incident, Gerlach says, "A girl cursed her teacher using the F-word, just talking filthy to her," Gerlach says. "She threw her arms into the teacher's face. The teacher caught the arm." The girl responded "Don't you touch me-I'll sue you." The teacher sent the girl out of the classroom but was back in 10 minutes, Gerlach says. "Nothing was done to her. [Students] are not being sent to principals. That student should not be immediately sent back into the classroom."
Harnisch calls such reports "spurious" and "un-newsworthy."
Sergeant Joe Sena of Associated Security Industries, which provides security for the district, says the number and type of fights are comparable at both high schools. However, he confirms, students at Capital are apprehended more than they are at Santa Fe High. "We catch them quickly," Sena says.
