AF Adderley teachers call for walk-through metal detector at entry points on campus
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — As the nation grapples with a spate of violent crime linked to gang violence, nine police officers will be stationed at nine inner-city schools, including AF Adderley Junior High School, that have been identified as the “most vulnerable”.
Director of Education Marcellus Taylor said the ministry has called on the support of the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) to “help with stabilizing the school base environment” and promoting “orderly conduct”.
“It seems to be a lot of outside stuff coming into the campus,” he told Eyewitness News.
“And so, we are in the process now of deploying, I think it’s nine police officers to each school with the specific role of keeping calm.
“There are some other things we are trying to do with some of the students, who seem to be most uncooperative, if I can use a gentler term, in the school environment and seeing how we can deal with them, so that the school environment can be more conducive for learning.”
The deployment comes on the heels of two male AF Adderley Junior High School students stabbing another student, who had to be hospitalized, last week.
Minister of National Security Wayne Munroe characterized the stabbing as gang-related, noting the two students responsible for the stabbing were believed to be affiliated with a gang.
There have been additional reports of fights on the school campus since the incident.
According to Taylor, the soon-to-be deployed officers will shore up safety on those campuses and assist administrators and security personnel with maintaining a conducive learning environment.
Asked if the ministry intends to request additional police support to expand school policing, Taylor said: “As we look at the effectiveness of it and also if a need is demonstrated there might be a further deployment of persons.”
He added: “We’re having the police there to support the orderly conduct on school grounds.”
In a March 24 letter addressed to the Ministers of Education and National Security and the Commissioner of Police, staff of AF Adderley expressed concern with the violence occurring among students and the “risk to safety it poses to all on the campus compound”.
The letter outlined a series of recommendations to improve safety on the campus, including reinstating weekly assemblies, staggered lunchtimes, and increasing the complement of security personnel in the short term.
The letter also called for all visitors should to be logged, provided visitors identification, and escorted while on campus.
Staff recommended lockdown drills be reinstated; camera systems erected in certain areas, including the field, front and back gates; the installation of a PA system; and a walk-through metal detector at entry points.
Further, staff called for rotational perimeter patrols by the administration, police officer and security personnel to “survey the compound for suspicious activity and contraband”; for teachers to be notified of students who have violent backgrounds; and for those who commit “extreme criminal acts” to be expelled.
Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) Belinda Wilson has long called for officers to be returned to schools to work alongside teachers, administrators and guidance counselors.
In May 2021, Police Commissioner Paul Rolle recommended the public have a conversation about removing some students who are “too far gone” from the school system as opposed to stationing police in schools.
While he said the last thing, he wished is for there to be an incident where a police officer has to injure a child or a child a police officer, he acknowledged that “we have kids bringing weapons into the schools”.
He said the main purpose of having police officers in schools is to steer those students away.
The original school policing program was launched under the Christie administration in 2007.
But the Free National Movement (FNM) reassigned officers after assuming office.
Police liaisons were later assigned to junior and senior schools, but were not required to physically remain on campus.
Police officers returned to school campuses under the last Christie administration in 2012.
The program appeared to have stalled after the Minnis administration assumed office in 2017, but was expected to be relaunched in September 2018 as then Minister of National Security Marvin Dames said he was committed to school policing.
In opposition, Dames called for metal detectors at the main entrances to all junior and senior high schools throughout the nation to screen all students, and for the government to engage private security companies to supplement the police presence on campus.
But those measures were not introduced under the Minnis administration.
