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Dec. 16, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTS: Violence data not adding up

Some schools underreport incidents

By LISA KIM BACH
REVIEW-JOURNAL

A police officer walks a police dog Tuesday through the scene of the worst mass shooting of students in the history of the Clark County School District. A review of high-school accountability reports conducted in the wake of the violence shows expulsions and suspensions of students who commit violent acts are underreported.
Photo by Craig L. Moran.



Mojave High School students exit a bus Wednesday near the corner of Walnut and Alexander roads where a shooting occurred at a school bus stop on Tuesday. The incident left six people wounded, including four students from Mojave High School.
Photo by John Gurzinski.

Don't look to the Clark County School District's accountability reports for an accurate measure of the violence in local high schools.

A review of data from 2006-07 shows a number of schools are grossly underreporting the number of incidents involving students suspended or expelled for violent acts directed at their peers and teachers.

Bonanza High School's accountability report documented one violence-related incident of suspension or expulsion in 2006-07. Yet during the same time frame, the Southwest Region school filed 40 recommendations for expulsion with the district's Education Services Division.

Mojave High School, a Northeast Region school still reeling from having four of its students wounded in a shooting Tuesday at a school bus stop, reported 35 suspensions or expulsions that resulted from violence against students. None were reported for violence to staff.

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    • "That's an out-and-out lie," former Mojave keyboarding teacher Rich Whitney said Friday. "I was assaulted last year."

    Whitney, 60, said he was struck in the chest by a freshman. He was attempting to stop the student after witnessing him spitting into a crowd.

    "All of those numbers are way low," Whitney said of Mojave's accountability statistics. "They aren't right."

    Mojave reported a total of 57 suspensions and expulsions in its accountability report. But it made 52 recommendations for expulsions alone to the Education Services Division.

    District leadership appeared to be unaware of the accountability reporting discrepancies until questioned by the Review-Journal.

    "Clearly there are errors," said Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Lauren Kohut-Rost, after being asked about extremely low expulsion figures reported by large high schools such as Palo Verde, Western, Cimarron-Memorial and Clark.

    "Information and procedures need to be tightened up and followed," Kohut-Rost said.

    The apparent underreporting will be investigated, she said.

    School Board member Sheila Moulton said this was the first time she'd heard questions about the accuracy of the accountability data on suspensions and expulsions.

    "As a board member, I definitely want to get to the bottom of this," Moulton said.

    The accountability reports are published annually by the district and present a statistical snapshot of each school campus. Information on graduation rates, enrollment, class sizes, teacher qualifications, test scores and discipline issues are covered in the documents. The information on student discipline is drawn from the district's SASI data management system.

    Both Kohut-Rost and Associate Superintendent of Education Services Edward Goldman said the problem might stem from the use of two different databases by schools in recording daily incidents, SASI and a secondary system.

    At the school level, deans are responsible for entering data. If they fail to convert the information from the secondary database to SASI, then the numbers in the accountability report for that campus will not be accurate.

    Flaws in the accountability reports don't mean schools aren't responding to student safety issues, Goldman said.

    "To me, the important thing is that they are dealing with the incidents," Goldman said. "Keeping statistics is important, but it's more important for them to deal with the situations. If they aren't entering data, it may be because of a lack of time or competing priorities."

    Moises Denis -- a parent, the president of the Nevada Parent Teacher Association and a state assemblyman -- expressed concern about the accuracy of the reports. Those are documents he has used as resources in all of his roles.

    Parents need to have an accurate source of information, Denis said. Kids aren't always communicative about what's happening at school, he said.

    "As parents, if we know something about it, we might be able to help do something about it," Denis said. "If we're kept in the dark, we can't do anything."

    Whitney, who now teaches at the Advanced Technologies Academy, questioned whether the underreporting is an offshoot of schools trying to avoid negative attention. Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, schools with high numbers of incidents that lead to arrests or citations can be deemed "persistently dangerous."

    Goldman said no school in the district has ever received that designation. The district operates 341 schools, including 44 high schools, populated by more than 308,000 students, which makes it the nation's fifth-largest system of public schools.

    In general, schools run the risk of earning "persistently dangerous" status if arrests or police citations on campus equal between 1 percent or 2 percent of student enrollment.

    According to data tracked by Education Services, there were at least 4,180 recommendations from schools districtwide for expulsions last school year.

    Schools made another 2,000 referrals of students to alternative schools. Most of those requests came from secondary schools, Goldman said. His figures do not include suspensions or other disciplinary actions a school might have taken independently.

    Canyon Springs High School, whose campus neighbors Mojave, reported 18 incidents of violence to students that led to suspensions or expulsions in 2006-07. Data from Education Services shows the school made 80 recommendations for expulsion during that time.

    Canyon Springs Principal Ronan Matthew said he would never ask or encourage any staff member to underreport data on student safety. It's possible there were mistakes in entering data into the system, Matthew said. But it's in no one's best interest to downplay the issues of student safety on any campus.

    "What happens, happens," Matthew said.

    He said the reporting problem is just one facet of the problem in the district's fragmented approach to student safety issues.

    Last year, he unsuccessfully tried to gain approval to have metal detectors installed on his campus. Although the district uses them routinely at sporting events, he was unable to gain support from the School Board or Superintendent Walt Rulffes for using them daily.

    "If you believe that metal detectors are not effective in keeping guns off campus, why are they used at football and basketball games?" Matthew said. "It's illogical."

    Although Matthew questioned where student safety ranked as a district priority, Moulton was unequivocal in her position.

    "Students always come first," Moulton said. "Safety is absolutely our No. 1 priority."

    Contact reporter Lisa Kim Bach at lbach@ reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0287.

    SCHOOL ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTS

    Clark County School District accountability reports track vital statistics at each school, including the number of violent incidents that led to suspensions and expulsions. But data from other district records indicates that the number of violent incidents that occur on high school campuses is being significantly underreported. The following data is from high school accountability reports published for 2006-07:

    2006-07 Suspensions and expulsions
    School Violence
    to students         		Violence
    to staff    		 Possession
    of weapons
    Advanced
    Technoligies Academy
    7 0 0
    Arbor View 15 1 2
    Basic 39 1 7
    Bonanza 1 0 0
    Boulder City 20 0 6
    Canyon Springs 18 1 6
    Centennial 41 0 9
    Chaparral 100 0 12
    Cheyenne 45 0 2
    Cimarron-Memorial 8 0 4
    Clark 9 1 3
    College of Southern
    Nevada East    		 0 0 0
    College of Southern
    Nevada West    		 0 0 0
    College of Southern
    Nevada South    		 0 0 0
    Coronado 47 0 0
    Del Sol 95 3 13
    Desert Pines 106 3 15
    Durango 64 2 9
    Eldorado 157 4 12
    Foothill 107 0 9
    Green Valley 66 0 5
    Indian Springs 25 0 0
    Las Vegas 33 1 1
    Las Vegas Academy 9 0 1
    Laughlin 28 0 2
    Legacy 33 0 4
    Liberty 41 1 4
    Moapa Valley 9 0 0
    Mojave 35 0 5
    Palo Verde 3 0 1
    Rancho 57 3 19
    Shadow Ridge 63 1 8
    Sierra Vista 55 3 9
    Silverado 64 1 21
    Spring Valley 48 1 11
    Valley 123 1 12
    Virgin Valley 18 0 2
    Virtual 0 0 1
    Western 16 2 6
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    Tom, Burbank wrote on December 16, 2007 06:40 PM: Thanks for the great article. Just reading how these bereaucratic hacks double-talk and jabber on about incompatible computer systems, competing priorities, a lack of time, blah-blah-blah is hilarious. These are the same non-standards to which they hold the district's students. They have no expectations of themselves or their co-workers, so how can they possibly have any of the students? The administration is bloated with apologists, finger-pointers and excuse-makers. This is the common denominator of the liberal infested touchy/feely education industry. It's sad, but true.They should all quit and work for Harrah's; I hear they may have several positions available soon, and the administrative hacks quoted here would fit perfectly.


    douglas wrote on December 16, 2007 12:42 PM: the parents of those involved in the "incidents" must be profoundly proud of the their parenting skills.

    same as a prospective home buyer should have disclosed upfront the number of crimes in a community before buying, so should parents have that info upfront when selecting a school for their bambinos.

    that there are differences in criminal/gang/drug/violence "events" among schools is the best reason for "school vouchers". thus the students who choose to study do not have to be surrounded by criminals. of course, when the quality students leave, that'll leave the gang bangers with schools "of their own". at least then, metro and school police can concentrate their attention to where the criminals are.


    Current CCSD Teacher wrote on December 16, 2007 12:24 PM: Mr. Whitney tells it like it is. I was a teacher and ECS at Mojave from 2001-2006. I was on call for computer issues and carried a school radio. Calls for help with fights between students were a regular occurence.

    In March 2006, a fellow teacher had a loaded 308 pistol pointed at him. The next day, two more loaded guns were found on campus. None of these incidents were made public.

    Why is it that students with IEPs quite often are not arrested or otherwise held accountable? This is not the case in other states. By allowing this behavior, we encourage violence.

    Looking at the report stats, it is obvious that Mojave and probably some other schools are purposely underreporting. Bottom line, the fault lies with the administration.

    IMO, all high schools should have metal detectors. A zero tolerance for violence should be the norm. Suspending students so they can roam and get in more trouble is too easy. Kids brag about getting kicked out so they don't have to attend classes.

    If it takes creating schools that are guarded by police for disruptive students, then let's do it! It is our duty to protect children who want to make something of their lives.


    to much wrote on December 16, 2007 09:34 AM: What liars. Me and my wife looked at the accountability report before i let her teach at an "AT RISK SCHOOL". What a disgrace, people make life decisions based on those reports. WE ARE OUTA THIS HELL HOLE CCSD, YOU JUST LOST ANOTHER TEACHER!!! If my wife wanted to teach in a war zone she would have joined the peace corp.


    ian wrote on December 16, 2007 09:16 AM: The district is a mess. I taught for many years in the district. I had a brick thrown at me while coaching and felt fear many times. Vegas grew way too fast and the district cannot deal with the dysfunctional students who have come to town. By putting casinos in neighborhoods, many good people have decided to skip town in order to protect the family. In their place have come what you now see in the schools.


    2zero wrote on December 16, 2007 08:50 AM: Moulton says “it is the first time she heard questions about….”. Moulton say’s “as a board member I want to get to the bottom of this”. You are a “Board” member because we (parents) entrust you to ask the questions, to know what questions to ask and to get on top of it before you have to get to the bottom of it!

    Sadly she is one of the better board members.


    TMC wrote on December 16, 2007 08:30 AM: There's plenty of blame to go around, starting first with the 'home' and then a too large school district that has become a larger day care facility. Reporting doesn't occur for political and financial reasons as well as school staffs that are overwhelmed by bad behavior they are allowed to do relatively little about. Coarse behavior is a cultural phenomenon in this country lacking boundaries of any sort. Look up the word anarchy.


    j wrote on December 16, 2007 08:08 AM: To Chris: Look at a magnet high school program for your child. She will be with students who are motivated to attend school, who have parents who are concerned about the education of their children. IT is not an issue about race, it is an issue about the value a family places on education that determines how a student acts at school.



    By the way, those numbers are a complete joke!


    j wrote on December 16, 2007 08:07 AM: To Chris: Look at a magnet high school program for your child. She will be with students who are motivated to attend school, who have parents who are concerned about the education of their children. IT is not an issue about race, it is an issue about the value a family places on education that determines how a student acts at school.

    By the way, those numbers are a complete joke!


    Dave L wrote on December 16, 2007 07:29 AM: Reporter Lisa Kim Bach;

    Great story, and great job on investigating and reporting it!

    Odd that these reporting systems seem to fall outside of the District's quantification for their Quality Improvement Program. Ommission or comission?!


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