ONT SCHOOLS: Uniformed police will be allowed back in Ontario schools, ministry says. Here’s how

[This is an absolute load of crap. I taught in an “inner-city” kind of school, thugs in the hallways, teenaged pimp managing young girls doing tricks in the washrooms….the situation became so bad, the school board agreed uniformed police were needed in the school. I balked at this decision as I knew how it would go down and even today, I will be accused of bias and racism in talking about the situation. I’m as colour blind as I can be but some people just can’t help playing the race card if it is to their advantage. And what I saw and knew would happen with uniformed police in the school would smear egg all over the administration and the school board. “Race has nothing to do with it. We are just trying to make the school safer and more secure,” are likely the kinds of words these school admins and execs would use. I guessed this police patrol strategy was doomed to failure as the powers that be would cater to the predominant culture of the school and the community surrounding it. The principal of the school was Black. Most of the student population was visible minority, Blacks, Filipinos, and Asians. I predicted the patrolling officer would be male, Black and young…bingo. Award the man the prize.

I also predicted that selecting this police officer was not a neutral-based decision but one based on the dominant colour of the school and surrounding community. I’m not sure if the phrase “fox guarding the henhouse” quite fits, but it was a sycophantic decision that catered to the community, the kind that would be made by Donald Trump, were it in his hands.

In short, this uniformed officer would fail. The crime rate, occurrences, never really changed at the school. The officer became the ‘buddy’ of many of the students, approachable and buddy-like in interaction. This is going to happen with the school appointments again. This is the powers that be patting themselves on the back for public policies that appear to be real action. They don’t; they will not. Within weeks, the old situation will be restored and the schools will be back where they were. But no one will point a finger of failure at the board, the schools, or the Ministry of Education as each will claim they did something concrete.

Is there a possibility of success using uniformed police in schools? Absolutely, but not in the way it will be done by the powers that be. But they see themselves as the epitome of decision-making, the arbiters of positive policy. Ha, and destined to fail unless they do it differently, not drastically different but different. But the powers that be executives believe they have all the answers. So, they are not likely to ask anyone in the educational trenches for their opinion. Especially one who has been retired for so long. “Oh, schools have changed a lot. Students are much different now. Old strategies are destined to fail.” Again the words from the front office. To which one can only say….”You people are wrong again. I am telling you so, upfront and long before. You’ll fail again.” And I know why, but who am I … an old codger who is biased and racist.]

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Uniformed police will be allowed back in Ontario schools, ministry says. Here’s how
Kristin Rushowy, senior writer. Toronto Star

Boards will have to allow uniformed officers to attend safety-related or student mentorship programs in schools — including career days — and must work to build positive relationships with police, the education ministry says.

Its new regulations, now open for feedback, are a part of Bill 33 — legislation the province recently passed giving it more power over boards — that also mandates “school resource officer” programs in cities where forces offer them.

But the regulations also outline a number of other scenarios where police can’t be excluded from school premises, including career days — a requirement that comes after a handful of boards refused to allow officers to attend or present while in uniform, even if they had a child in the class.

The issue of police in schools is controversial, with the Toronto public board eliminating the resource officer program in 2017 after conducting a survey that found a minority of students felt uncomfortable or intimidated by programs that placed armed officers to boost safety but also run extracurriculars and take part in other activities.

While some argued the program fostered good relations among students and police and made schools safer, critics said racialized students were disproportionately targeted and felt unsafe.

The possibility of the program returning has prompted a number of protests at Queen’s Park.

Police already have access to schools in case of emergencies or threat, and boards do work co-operatively with them on some safety programs.

However, the province’s proposed regulations detail what’s expected, including providing police “with access to school premises, and participation in school programs” for safety drills, school resource officer/youth engagement officer programs, road or driving safety, mentorship, student well-being and any other initiatives “to build relationships between local police services and students.”

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“School boards would also be required to permit police officers both access and participation at career days, extracurricular events, festivals, fundraisers or any other activity or event involving parents, guardians or other members of the community who may also have access to the school premises,” the proposed regulations state.

“School boards would be required to permit officers to participate at these events whether they are in uniform or in plain clothes,” it adds, while also working with police “in a manner that promotes” safety and “builds and maintains positive relationships.”

Emma Testani, press secretary to Education Minister Paul Calandra, said “school resource officer programs help foster positive relationships between students and law enforcement, ultimately making our schools safer.”

She said the ministry has “been consulting with police agencies, parent groups, and school boards across the province on how we can bring back school resource officers and youth engagement programs that will help support students and make our schools safer.”

But the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario has called the move an “egregious overreach,” saying it has “long opposed the use of (school resource officer) programs. Numerous Ontario school boards removed police from schools based on data, community feedback and human rights concerns,” and noted the province’s Human Rights Commission had said Black and racialized children could be subjected “to a higher level of surveillance” impacting their mental health and education.

Before Bill 33 passed, the Ontario Public School Board’s Association urged the province to pause forcing the school resource officer program and commit “to an evidence-based provincial review of (such)  programs, centering the lived experiences of marginalized and historically underserved students.”

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This school year, the province has also mandated that one professional activity day for teachers include information about the school resource officer program, as well as the role of police.

In 2023, the Ottawa-Carleton board landed in hot water after banning a parent from speaking to her child’s school about her policing career if she wore her uniform or arrived in a police car. The board had ended its school resource officer program in 2021.

Also in 2023, a police officer was told not to attend his child’s career day at a Grand Erie public school. The board later apologized.

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