- By Dan Veaner
- Around Town
Print 
| "I find book bags all over the school. When I go into them to see who they belong to I will often find calculators, sometimes money, all kinds of things. And they're just laying there." |
Most of the theft in Lansing takes place in the locker rooms where Stone notes students are lax about locking lockers, as opposed to the hall lockers which are more secure because students are better about locking them. She notes that they don't leave the same things in hall lockers, because iPods, cell phones, and cash are typically carried on their person except when they are in gym.
The Institute of Education Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Education, tracks crimes in schools. Their most recent statistics track crimes of all kinds with the most recent statistics coming from the 1999-2000 school year, when 86.4% of all U.S. schools reported crime incidents.
High schools had the highest incidence of theft/larceny at 79.5 as compared with 64.5 at middle schools and 30.3 in elementary schools. 100,000 theft/larceny incidents in high schools accounted for nearly half of all such incidents in schools. Urban schools experienced 52.6 incidents, while rural schools averaged 41.9. Interestingly, the lowest rate of reported theft in schools was in the Northeast, with the highest in the Western region of the country. So theft is not unique to Lansing, but it remains something the community must deal with.
Some Best Practices for Preventing Theft For Students
For Parents
|
Last month about $3,000 worth of iPods and cash were stolen from the visiting Watkins Glen Varsity football team's lockers during a home game in Lansing. As yet there has been no resolution to that theft. But Stone notes that it occurred because the door to the locker room was left opened. "We had a procedure that wasn't followed," she says. "We always provide visiting teams with a key to the locker room so they can lock their own space. The door was locked, but kids had propped it open as they were coming and going and they never shut it. I'm sure someone just went in, and it was an opportunity."
Stone says that theft of the calculators required in math classes has dropped dramatically since iPods and cell phones became popular. Of course cash is also a favorite. But she stresses that these thefts could be greatly reduced if students were more vigilant about protecting their belongings. "I find book bags all over the school," she says. "When I go into them to see who they belong to I will often find calculators, sometimes money, all kinds of things. And they're just laying there. So it isn't even a matter of a locker."
Many college administrations often balk at calling police, hesitating to inflict a real world consequence on developing students. "I have no problem getting the police involved," Stone says. "You have to learn. I can't say I'm going to protect you now, because kids that are stealing aren't going to get it any other way."
| "I definitely think this community is very trusting in general." |
But she says that she has not called the police where there are mitigating circumstances. "There are times when you have to try to evaluate what you've got. If I can recover merchandise, and return it to the rightful owners, and work in a partnership with a family, it's often not necessary to take it any farther than that," she says. "If I don't get that then the student isn't necessarily getting support from anywhere else, and sometimes the system is the best support they're going to get."
She stresses prevention on many fronts. Every five weeks she sends a letter to parents in which dealing with theft is highlighted. She says she would rather work with parents to help a child troubled enough to steal. "I try to appeal to the families, that when your child comes home with something that you know they don't own, that you need to do something about it," she says. "Don't just take at face value that they're borrowing it from so and so, because people don't let you borrow their iPod, or their new pair of jeans, or whatever."
She says when parents remain involved they are more able to influence their children, and that parents who are trying to afford their children more privacy may be missing opportunities to be engaged in their lives and exercise more responsibility for what they do. She acknowledges that single and working parents have little time and energy to spare, but says that engaging your kids is vital. "I try to look for ways to package it. If you want to have a discussion with your child, have it in their room. Just go in there, see what they're doing. Hang out with them a little bit. Look at their pictures that they just took... it doesn't have to be some oppressive thing."
And she doesn't let victims' parents off the hook. "You can't say enough to your kids to get them to take care of their stuff, to secure it, or leave it home," she says. "You can talk to your children about what would be a good choice. If you're forgetful, if you're lazy about locking your stuff up, don't bring it. It's that simple. It's a choice." She notes that most of the thefts remain unresolved, so preventing them is a number one priority.
| "I try to appeal to the families, that when your child comes home with something that you know they don't own, that you need to do something about it." |
"I think the children here are a reflection of the community, so they aren't inherently as suspicious as they might be coming from another community," Stone says. "I definitely think this community is very trusting in general, and that does add a barrier to getting the message to sink in."
Stone stresses that if students are more careful about securing their belongings the temptation for someone else to steal them is greatly reduced. And while no parent likes to find that their child is stealing, she says that facing facts and confronting the child is better than letting them think they can get away with it. "Work with your child," she says. "If you see something awry don't take it at face value. It's better if we work together to support your child if they have a problem instead of waiting until later. Because I'm willing to work with people if the families are willing to work with me. If they won't work with me I'm going to have to take whatever measures I can take, because I have to keep the rest of the kids here safe and protected."
----
v2i42