<p><a href=“http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_020906WABgarfieldattacksJK.103690ce.html[/url]”>http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_020906WABgarfieldattacksJK.103690ce.html</a></p>
<p>oh I was there yesterday when that happend- please- they call the police because somebody gets their hat stolen?
more happened to me at my school in the fancy suburbs and we didn’t even have security guards- at Garfield we have the principal- the community police officer- many adults very invloved to help make it a safe place.
they also make it sound like it is blacks against whites
that isn’t how it is
most of the problem is with kids who aren’t even in school/from the school/from Seattle
we get kids, carloads of kids coming up from Renton to cause problems
I do come with my big dog when I can and walk around the neighborhood after school, so far I have kicked a couple adults who didn’t belong there out- but most of the problem isn’t in the school-
but kids need to do their part too- quit walking around with those white headphones for one- that just screams that you have a couple hundred bucks in your pocket.
dont hang out at the gas station across the street where people go to buy drugs- that implies you have a big wad of bills in your wallet ripe for the picking.
and tell someone when something happens- to have increased police visibility they need to know what is happening- it does scare off the thugs</p>
<p>If you are going to be concerned about safety in schools in the Seattle area- I would be more concerned about these incidents
arson in Kirkland</p>
<p>Blaming the victim?? It sounded like it was several incidents also.</p>
<p>Im not saying that if students are assaulted that they shouldn’t get help from an adult
however- it seems interesting that it was such a slow news day that reporting on bullies in the city made the evening news.
Whats next, stories on shoplifters at Nordstroms?</p>
<p>The comment that stood out for me in the article is that when black kids get beat up or whatever, its pretty much ignored, while the calvery comes out when white kids are intimidated</p>
<p>And I am wondering about the school- is it integrated, do black kids have access to the AP classes</p>
<p>While I don’t like bullies, the school needs to look at the deeper issues</p>
<p>I want to know if the AP program there is for the “white” kids or how it works, because it is unclear in the article</p>
<p>it has been several incidents I agree- but it is the city- you have to be aware-any place you go- that isn’t blaming the victim- but if being proactive can avoid an incident- then I would chose that-
I have been at the community meetings because I am concerned about the school and the neighborhood- thats why I am there with my dog making sure kids can get on the metro buses home ok
The neighborhood isn’t perfect- halfways houses in neighborhood- registered and probably unregistered sexual offenders-
it is a neighborhood that has always been in transition
it goes up and down and now it is going up again, but that causes conflicts- the papers like to write about “the two garfields”.
It makes great copy apparently- then we have community members coming to our PTA meetings and saying we are racist, when they aren’t actually in teh school building to see the kids interacting.
I dont know all the history of the AP classes at Garfield- I attended school in the Lake washington district during the start of integration-my oldest d didn’t attend public schools although she did attend a private school a few blocks away and had friends who attended Garfield ( as did my mother)</p>
<p>I have been advocating for neighborhood students to have priority, if no other high school in the city has a special program that gives students priority to attend over neighborhood students, then I don’t think APP( the district 1st-8gd gifted program) middle school students should have priority.
Other schools have AP classes- there is an IB prgram in the north end and they are starting one in the south end, I have been telling APP parents that as far as a really rigourous prgram for their gifted kids- I would pick IB)</p>
<p>BUt among the APP parents- Garfield is * the * place to be. I admit it has a cachet and a reputation of having great teachers- but from what I see- it isnt as divided as the media makes it out-</p>
<p>I realize it is different because I have a daughter- she has AP classes as well as remedial. She has friends in her classes across academic/racial/economic lines. I know that for boys, particulary black boys, it is much more difficult. There is an undercurrent of boys having to prove themselves in the school to the * top dogs* as it were.</p>
<p>But I don’t know that , that is unique to Garfield- I think it just gets more attention because of the perception of “white AP kids on the 3rd floor and black kids taking classes on teh first floor”
As far as I know, the science classes are on teh third floor and everyone takes science, on the 1st floor I know my daughter had a marketing class, but not many classrooms, cause that is also where the auditorium, offices etc are.</p>
<p>Why we liked Garfield was that they had AP & honors classes, & because they didn’t have you jump through any hoops to register. My daughter has trouble with math, that would have restricted her to lower level science as well as math classes at some other schools. At Garfield, they help her get the support she needs to succeed, even without the “gifted” background that the students from Washington middle school have, she is taking an AP class, and has been taking the top level science classes, and honors language arts. So the academics are really only divided if you choose not to take challenging classes.</p>
<p>But this does add to the complexity of the school- should be * really interesting* next year when they move to Wallingford for two years while they completely rebuild Garfield.
Rebuilding Garfield I think will add a lot for the community. It will improve the community center- add another theatre and the whole design is much more accessible and welcoming.
Of course my daughter will be graduated by then-but the neighborhood has been very involved in the design and is looking forward to the new building
<a href=“http://www.gsdt.net/[/url]”>http://www.gsdt.net/</a></p>
<p>That comment stands out due to its absurdity. In a city like Seattle any white on black intimidation like that would be front page news.</p>
<p>There is a community center next door- that attracts kids who don’t go to the neighborhood high schools. The director told me, that his windows were smashed and his tires were slashed, just because he made some kids leave who weren’t following the rules. For whatever reason- it seems to just be a small group of kids that are having issues, but just as it only takes one kid to disrupt a whole classroom, it doesn’t take many to upset the neighborhood.</p>
<p>We just had a safety meeting last week, and we are having more, to help prevent serious incidents like we had several years ago when someone was beaten quite badly on their way home from school.
Kids need to report incidents to adults, kids need to leave the grounds unless they are in an activity, and the adults need to tell adminstrators/police, so that we can keep track of what is going on.( and the kids who are starting the incidents, need to be involved so that they don’t see others as potential targets)
But things really do happen anywhere, my older daughter, was in a coffeeshop in Wallingford, and left her coat on the chair while she went to the counter to get a napkin. Just in the time it took to do that, someone took her ipod out of her coat pocket.
Everybody has to bear some responsibility for their stuff.
Just because in the Reed bubble, she felt safe leaving her laptop unattended in the library , didn’t mean it was a smart thing to do.
When we don’t hear about things, we don’t think about them.</p>
<p>Barrons, please read the news…a white girl goes missing, it is on the news for weeks and weeks, a minority girl goes missing- zip, nada, zilch</p>
<p>There is a problem with the press in its coverage and to think there isn’t is absurd</p>
<p>Unless she was alleged to have been kidnapped by whites–then it’s news. Remember Tawana Brawley?</p>
<p>The one case, the one that got national coverage</p>
<p>Keep trying to make your point,come on…</p>
<p>The Texas case where several whites kidnapped and dragged a black man to his death.
The fact that black on black crime is less reported on the news may be based on the fact that it is common enough not to be newsworthy and I think many media outlets don’t wish to highlight black crime anymore than they have to in order not to embarrass the black community. Call it self-censorship.</p>
<p>ek4, I had the same thought before I read your post: must have been a slow news day. Kids take kid’s hat. That’s a news story??</p>
<p><em>yawn…</em></p>
<p>maybe they’ll get some street smarts. At my school you had to stay on campus during the day. Who hasn’t had their hat taken?</p>
<p>… and getting your hat taken is not getting jumped. Getting jumped is getting hurt with significant bleeding and/or broken bones.</p>