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New York City to expel gun-toting students
March 22, 1997Web posted at: 8:19 p.m. EST (0119 GMT)
From Correspondent Cynthia Tornquist
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Students who bring weapons to public schools in New York City may be expelled under a new city policy, but some civil rights advocates worry the plan sends the wrong message.
Educators have approved a policy to expel students who are 17 years old or older who bring a gun to school, or who attack someone with another weapon such as a knife.
"They bring a gun to school, I think they ought to be put out of school," said New York Schools Chancellor Rudolph Crew.
New York City's new policy, which takes effect in the fall, is one of the nation's toughest.
"We certainly can't say to a youngster who brings a gun that it's all right to come back tomorrow," said Frank Mickens, principal of Boys and Girls High School.
'Where are you going to go?'
Some students like the idea of enforced safety.
"To me, if you carry a gun and you're afraid of violence and you have a gun, then you're just adding to the violence," a young man in a gray sweatshirt said.
"I feel very safe because in our school, we have a lot of security," a woman student added.
But one former student said just because a student is caught carrying a gun, the city should not automatically turn him or her onto the street.
"Where are you going to go from there if you're not going to be allowed to get an education?" he said.
Violation of state law?
Some advocates suggest the policy may violate a New York state provision that promises public education to anyone under 21 who has not received a high school diploma.
"We have to make sure that the younger children who still have a way to go to finishing school have an alternative setting to go to," Sandra Feldman of the American Federation of Teachers said.
New York City currently offers students the option of alternative programs, or suspends them for up to a year for wrongdoing. Educators say that ideally, they would like to see expelled students given another chance to continue their education, but economics may dictate otherwise.
School violence a nationwide problem
And others point to broader concerns.
"There comes a point where the common good becomes stronger than the individual good," said Sy Fliegel, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
Concern over school violence nationwide has prompted many school districts to adopt tougher stands against weapons possession.
In 1994, the federal Gun-Free Schools Act required school districts receiving federal funds to suspend for at least a year any student who brought a gun to school.
While the American Civil Liberties Union says it will look into New York City's new policy, the State Department of Education says expulsion would not violate the state provisions, provided school officials give students a fair hearing and the right to legal counsel.
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