How does this incident at Walbrook - not to mention the half a dozen or so fires that have occurred there in the past month - only register as a blog entry? When will we as Baltimoreans begin paying more than lip service to the greatest social injustice facing our community today?

This is not the first incident at this school. This is the first one the school board let get out! My Child is afraid to go to school because of the Gang Activity and the violence. How can a child learn and watch there back. Baltimore is no longer the City that Reads but the City of Gang and Violence. How can our kids Read if they are AFRAID!

what is this social injustice you are speaking of i see it like this the kids have no home training and the parent's don't care so why should the kid's if parent's where more involved stuff like this wouldn't happen people need to START TAKING RESPONISABLITIES FOR THEMSELVES AND STOP BLAMING EVERY ONE ELSE

The high schools all over the city are being taken over by the "Come Back Kids". Great idea letting 250+ of the dropouts or students who have been put out back into the system. Talk to the principals and see how these "come back kids" are doing. Most hit the halls and started the same routine they left. Worse yet many were the gang leaders and now we have all the little cronies out causing hell. The "needs 2 classes" student was the great exception, most of the kids were WAYYY behind and over age. How do you expect Walbrook to get it together, you can't move the serious issues out of the building. Not to mention the Alternative Schools are a joke, Budley keeps those slots locked up so he can claim a great victory and turnaround.
Serious Sara please do some reporting, look at the reality in the schools.

"Take responisablities [sic] for themselves"? We are speaking of minors, who - by definition - are not responsible, legally or morally.

As a teacher at Thurgood Marshall High School, I'm more than aware of the all to real dangers these young students face. Gang activity in my school has grown to a point where I find I must compromise my own ethics. "Give me that bandanna" has turned into "Tuck your bandanna in your pocket", a slippery slope towards absolute ignorance of the problem. In the face of the growing acceptance of gangs & violence in our children's lives (as they have become more and more jaded about the issue), we are called forward as professionals and parents. Now isn't the time to shout (or type in big letters) and point fingers... now is the time to pull together and find an acceptable attack strategy on the violence issue. Parent involvement is not the only issue that leads to student gang membership and violence. Baltimore has let a culture of crime, violence, and apathy grow over the last decade in all aspects of the city's life. If you want to help, lets talk. If you want to shout, I will find others to work with.

Charles, devolving responsibility down to the parents and children is another way of saying lets keep the status quo. From an educators perspective there's not much one can do to change people you have little interaction with. How do you propose a teacher suddenly make a parent responsible (or take care of their "RESPONISABLITIES") and instill values they never had into their children?

You're basically making an excuse for not having to go above and beyond, to do whatever is necessary to reverse the cycle of poverty/violence and close the achievement gap. Yea, it would be nice if we lived in an ideal world where a teacher didn't also have to be a parent/social worker/police officer, but that's not reality. You can either complain from your computer or teach the next generation to do it better than their parents did.

As a graduate of the Walbrook High School Criminal Justice Program, and now a Senior at University of Baltimore of the same study, I think the core issue of school violence is the authority that they have in the home. When I was a student at Walbrook we were on the news everyday for fires and other acts of violence, but at the same time when school was over there were no stories to hear. Only when the students were there was there trouble. Instead of blaming just the city and the school board, blame the parents for allowing their child to behave this was, learning begins in the home, and as part of Edward Sutherlands' Differential Association, behavior is learned.

Charles, I am involved parent my child life all together. I am involved with what she does in school and out of school. I instill in my child that disrespecting adults is not exceptable but, when a child get around other that is not grounded it turns into a big problem. I purchased $125.00 worth of uniforms and students don't wear uniforms. The principal says she can turn them away for not having a uniform but if they can afford brand new clothing, RED, BLUE or BLACK GANG CLOTHING, the child and parent need to be take responsiblity. when you go to work you dress for the job or they send you home, you don't work and you don't get paid! It is not Fair and it is Time for everyone pull together like Joe Clark says why are we letting One or Two Apple Spoil a whole school?

These are certainly the last days in Revalations we need to pray for our schools, teachers, parents and must of the ones that act out of evil.

I see what appears to be a common strand with the last few posts and other incidents this year-one that is troubling to me and I would like some clarity on it.

It relates to information control or the lack of free flowing information within BCPSS. There seems to be a lot of misinformation or no information or information discrepancies coming out about incidents or numbers that is really troubling to me.

Why was the Walbrook incident, as stated in the first entry, only reported on by this blog? Why were fires that were alleged to have happened there not covered by the paper or addressed by the system?

Why is there is 600 person discrepancy over the number of seniors between MSDE numbers and BCPSS figures?

Why, even though it has been stated OVER and OVER again by nearly everyone who teaches in a high school this year, has the gang issue NOT been reported on or appropriately addressed?

Why was there an hour difference in the time reported that Patterson High had its evacuation and the actual time of evacuation?

Why has the heating issue NOT been addressed effectively beyond the confines of the sacrosanct Poly/Western complex?

I recognize the desire to highlight the good and minimize the bad in a system like this, but things really are, honest to goodness, out of control in so many schools. Alonso and his henchmen will never get to the level they want in terms of achievement and engagement if we continually gloss over, misreport or simply not report on critical components of what is going on.

I see the argument against me already. Since the "decentralization", schools are left to their own to deal with their own issues, but I want a leader who stands up and addresses the concerns of every employee and student, irrespective of institution.

Make me feel like a valued member of the team. At least for me, open access to quality and reliable information goes a long way to providing that sense of value.

Am I crazy on this?!?

Stu is absolutely right! I applaud the efforts to bring students back to school, but they should have been interviewed, they're records should have been reviewed and THEN a PROPER placement should have been made. Those students who only needed a class or two might have been placed in a "regular" setting while those with lacking many credits and who may have had discipline issues would have been better off assigned to an alternative setting where their particular needs could have been best addressed. I've said it before, this was a hastily implemented situation that is not necessarily in the best interest of the students. It sure looks good to outsiders though :).

"Anonymous", I'm not sure what the last days of Revalations (sic) are, but what we need is action, not prayer and the "evil" is the fact that we are not, as a society, doing what's best for our most challenged and challenging students.

Greetings to all,
This is my first time entering this blog and the comments are very very interesting. I believe everyone has made a valid point for the most part and as a lot of bloggers have stated, the main point here is to correct the problem. NOT TO BLAME, because that part no longer matters. It's everybodies fault. Your's, mine, the school's, their parent's and lastly thier's. Behavior is definitely learned and it definitely begins at home; however, there are millions of people out here, who AREN'T products of there home situation, meaning, they decided to do the opposite of what was instilled whether it be good or bad. I do know that somewhere down the line things spiralled, totally OUT OF CONTROL. This city's youth are OUT OF CONTROL, and we need to get a serious grip on it or the city will be totally destoyed. As a former teacher, from some of the toughest schools, Booker T, Thurgood Marshall and Canton, I know that kids respect, those who respect them. And Im not talking about kissing up and being their "best friend". Im talking about them really knowing you care about them and have their best interest at heart. These are the ones who you are able to instill morals into and make them think twice about bad decisions. these are the ones that will come to you when they know they are about to make a bad move. For me, the baddest of the bad came to me and while I wasnt with them every minute of everyday, my spirit and my big mouth was. Us as educators have to continuously press on and do what we been doing and if you're NOT in it for the students, then it's the WRONG profession for you. THEY KNOW WHO HAS THEIR BEST INTEREST!!!! I currently have a program that I am trying to get into the school system that I believe will make a HUGE difference. Please visit my website www.royalkeys.com, this will give you more insight about my program. Let me know what you think. Thanks for your time.

this is still going on,in the current school,like the fights,banks,stabbings,jumpings,etc...