Saline school district plans public forum to discuss race issues, playground safety after assault
The Saline school district will host a public forum to address issues of safety and race that have have arisen in recent months, administrators say.
Officials said the event in the Pleasant Ridge Elementary School cafeteria at 6:30 p.m. May 17 Â isn't directly in response to a recent playground assault at Heritage Elementary School that injured an 11-year-old boy. But they expect several questions will be raised about playground safety and how the district plans to adjust with fewer teachers for the foreseeable future.
“It seemed like this was a hot topic on people’s minds and, in terms of security, let them know what we currently do and what more we can do with their help,” said Steve Laatsch, the district’s assistant superintendent of instruction who will lead the forum.
Questions about the April 20 attack will be addressed, Laatsch said. But the forum will also incorporate discussions about transportation safety and student health, given a recent whooping cough outbreak. Laatsch said he also expects many questions about how the district will operate after announcing teacher layoffs last month.
An assault on the playground at Heritage Elementary School remains under investigation.
Courtesy of Saline Area Schools
Laatsch and administrators won't discuss specifics of the assault while it is still under investigation by Saline police. Laatsch said an investigation by Heritage Principal Betty Rosen-Leacher revealed seven sixth grade boys were involved in the lunch-time assault, and each was disciplined according to the level of involvement. He would not elaborate.
Police said the victim went into convulsions and showed seizure-like symptoms after he was pushed down to the ground from behind. He lost consciousness and was taken by ambulance to the hospital for evaluation. He was released later that day.
Parent volunteers at the playground could not see the assault, officials said.
Investigators were still interviewing students and witnesses and will send their report to prosecutors for review, Saline Police Chief Paul Bunten said.
In the meantime, the boy’s father said he has consulted with an attorney and may file civil suits either against the district, the assailants, or both. He insists his son, one of only a handful of black students at the school, was the target of a racially-motivated attack.
“There is no doubt in my mind that race was an issue in this,” the man said in a phone interview this week. He declined to give his name but said he will soon make formal statements with his attorney.
His son is physically recovered and has had weekly doctor’s visits since the incident. However, he’s having difficulty going back to classes, his father said. He said three of the boys accused of being involved in the assault were previously disciplined for calling his son racially insensitive terms.
Although police and school officials wouldn't discuss the specifics of the case, both Laatsch and Bunten said they have no information indicating race was a factor. They also noted one of the boys involved and disciplined by the school is black.
Art Aisner is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com. Reach the news desk at news@annarbor.com or 723-623-2530.
Comments
Liz
Tue, May 11, 2010 : 12:16 p.m.
I grew up in Saline but attended out of area schools due to the racism in the Saline school district. Let me just say that I am white. I remember back in either 1999 or 2000 a couple black teenage boys were beaten real bad by some white kids. I know this to be true because I remember developing the pictures for this incident. What bothered me most about that incident was that the boys lockers had racial comments spray painted all over them. That is unacceptable and should of never been tolerated! It is sad that race is even an issue any more. It's time for a change Saline!
hypsi
Sun, May 9, 2010 : 10:33 p.m.
Wasn't there an incident in 2007 involving racial intimidation in Saline? http://www.falloutcentral.com/news/2007/06/21/michigan-teens-charged-with-racial-intimidation-and-vandalism-in-bias-incident/ And didn't they also have an issue at the middle school with "fight clubs"? I've been searching for the article online but am not able to uncover it. Pretty sure I read it on mlive a few years ago. Not sure what is going on in Saline, but thank goodness they are starting to talk about it.
GRANDPABOB
Sun, May 9, 2010 : 4:26 p.m.
I know it is acient history but this 1964 graduate of SAS was knocked out in the 5th grade by a student with a 2x4 on the playground and spent at least one night in the hospital and there was no news story about it, an as far as I rember no punishment to the 2 involed in the assault. All 3 were white.
ffej440
Sun, May 9, 2010 : 10:55 a.m.
stunhsif- Right on the money. I am a 1980 Saline Grad, K-12. In 5th grade I got knocked out in a playground fight with one of the few blacks in our grade. It was not in the News,There was No special forum and I didn't sue anybody. This same student injured our teacher so bad that year he had to go to the hospital. I never thought of it as racial- just a wild child. Children of all races act out, its part of growing up. Remember these are children- Not adult brains at work.
racerx
Sun, May 9, 2010 : 10:18 a.m.
Why wasn't there any mention of the race of the student assault in the 4/24/10 article? So, now that's it known that the victim was black, this article writes that topics of race will be discussed at a school forum. There seems to be an ongoing issue with A2.com deciding when to mention race in a article and when not to. The same could be said of when a description of a person is called out more common when the person is of color. Please A2.com, develop a standard and try to stick to it.
stunhsif
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 10:50 p.m.
@Monica R-W, I graduated from Saline in 1977 and we had as many black classmates then as there are now in Saline. They were like any of us, just normal kids going to school, playing in band or competing in sports. Never had an issue,never had a problem, they were just kids like the rest of us. In fact, we tried to treat them like they were special and they would have nothing to do with that. Their father who was a long time Saline resident passed away about 5 years ago. He was a well respected outstanding citizen. There has been no white flight in at least 40 years to Saline from Ypsilanti. Let's not make this a racial incident until all the facts are out and proven. But this is 2010, so I expect that some high cost trial attorney will be getting involved to "cheese out" whomever feels they can get some money?
Rosie
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 10:35 p.m.
As an Ypsilanti teacher I can tell you that for the past five years 70-85% of the students in my classes were minorities, with the majority of those students being black, so I don't understand why Macabre Sunset believes Ypsilanti is "still mostly white anyway." Colleagues have said that in the past the majority of the students were white but that there has been a shift over the years and now the black students are in the majority. I cannot say what the reason for that is. Monica R-W could be correct in saying why there was a shift in population demographics, but it could be for others reasons all together. Unless a white person who fled Ypsilanti because he/she felt uncomfortable with the racial make-up of the city wants to offer that information up, it is only speculation. Let us hope that something positive and productive comes from the forum in Saline and that the family of the assaulted boy does not have to file a suit of any kind.
Macabre Sunset
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 6:43 p.m.
I don't think it's fair to characterize Saline's population growth (which isn't that large - it's still just a city of about 8,000 people) as being flight from a racial group or from a particular area. And Ypsilanti is still mostly white anyway. I do think the crime rate might have something to do with people of any race choosing to raise children in Saline rather than Ypsilanti. According to city-data, the rate is 134.3 (national average of 320.9) in Saline, 600.8 in Ypsilanti. Breaking that down a little, 1.3% of Ypsilanti's residents are victims of violent crime in an average year, while less than 0.2% of Saline's are. People can make that choice for many reasons, most of which have nothing to do with racism. I don't think people should teach their children to deal with any particular ethnic background. Just instill a good set of morals, and trust that if you don't behave like a racist, your children won't, either.
Monica R-W
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 6:03 p.m.
Well, good to see that Saline is going to have a "Forum" to deal with its' racial issues in the school district. Now, the truth is "Forums" do nothing to help the underlying issues of Racial Relations. The real underlying issue is that "White-Flight" from the Ypsilanti Public School district in the late 1980's and early 1990's was the reason Saline's Public School Population increased. The truth is that many White families ran to Saline for, in their view, get away from Ypsilanti Public Schools because it was becoming "Too Black" in their opinion. The other issue is why was this a problem for those families and what have they taught their children (or grandchildren) about dealing within a world were minorities are quickly becoming the majority, in the meantime? Running to Saline, Canton or other, primarily "White" areas to "stay away from the Black people" is not fixing the problem. What happens when little Johnny or Suzy goes to college and quickly realizes that the world is not all "White" and this is not the 1950's but 2010's? These parents needs to teach their children to learn how to deal with all Ethnics backgrounds and Races and not run away from change. In a minute, no matter were you run....you will not run far enough to blind the changing World and state of Michigan demographics.
Macabre Sunset
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 1:43 p.m.
I'm glad the police are taking this seriously. And I hope the schools stop this "boys will be boys" mentality when it comes to assault. We have "zero tolerance" for aspirin on school grounds, but we tolerate a beating that could kill a child.
The Black Stallion
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 12:03 p.m.
Thank you Saline
DPL
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 8:54 a.m.
While physical violence between students is never condoned, it happens on an annual basis, the guilty are punished, and we move on. I don't know how many incidents per year each school in Saline experiences, but I suspect one example of punishment deters others from doing the same. Peace and harmony instruction happens in all levels of teaching, but the root instruction and instilled values occur in the home. School districts can only do so much, given the restrictions placed by the state; it is difficult to sight any morale authority in a godless curriculum. Certainly, a greater visible presence of adults might prevent incidents between students, but kids can be pretty clever and know how to avoid being seen perpetrating an act of physical harm. 100% prevention is improbable. The best we can expect, then, from our parents and educators is a measured and fair response to such acts and for them to use these incidents as opportunities to instruct....which is exactly what the district is doing.
Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball
Sat, May 8, 2010 : 8:38 a.m.
Good to see Saline handle these issues, they can be tough to deal with.