Students rewarded for telling about weapons
Crime Stoppers of the Inland Northwest rewarded 12 kids during the just-ended school year for telling on classmates who bring weapons to school.
The Keep Guns out of School program works with most Spokane County school districts and some private schools, offering $75 rewards.
Despite the name, it’s not just about guns – weapons are broadly defined under districts’ zero-tolerance policies. Crime Stoppers board member Eric Green said one case this year involved a student wearing a belt buckle with a built-in folding knife.
Green wouldn’t provide specifics about cases, except to say that two involved firearms.
However, based on reports at the time, one case involved a 13-year-old student who brought a loaded .22-caliber handgun to Spokane’s Salk Middle School. The teen was caught after telling three friends about the gun in his locker.
Education acronym of the week
Although he was originally arrested and the school requested an emergency expulsion, we can’t tell you what became of that pistol-packing kid mentioned above.
Sorry, federal law prohibits disclosure, said a Spokane Public Schools spokeswoman, when a reporter asked recently. And it didn’t matter that the reporter didn’t want the student’s name.
The reason cited: FERPA. And that’s this week’s education acronym.
Jim Bradshaw, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Education, agreed with the local interpretation of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, which was passed by Congress in 1974 and prohibits school districts from releasing disciplinary records on any student.
Bradshaw said the law applies even if the student’s name is withheld, because someone might be able to figure out the kid’s identity through other means.
Even those who fully understand FERPA sometimes are surprised by its restrictions. Bradshaw said that when his son was beat up on a school playground, he demanded to know how the bully would be punished. The principal refused to comment, citing FERPA.
Number of the week
25 – Percent of Washington kids who attend schools east of the Cascades. But we have 45 percent of the school districts on our side of the mountains, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.