Letters to the Editor

Police, district focus on school safety

The Inquirer spent more than three full pages on Nov. 6 to tell a story about the training and deployment of police officers in the Houston Independent School District ("Armed with guns and understanding"). Much of the four-story package was devoted to detailed profiles of Houston cops working in schools, maintaining safety, and acting as important role models for teenagers.

The very same story could have been written about Philadelphia. But The Inquirer ignored the facts, disregarded my statement that city police have been stationed in schools for more than 30 years, and only once noted that Philadelphia officers are "assigned" to city schools.

Today, there are about 40 fully equipped police officers stationed in 22 schools - officers like Gregory West, who has worked inside Overbrook High School for six of his 21 years in the department. West and his partner, Officer Andrew Prosser, know that students there appreciate the work they do because graduates often come back to the school to tell them so. West works closely with school police, including patrolling the school grounds and monitoring the Safe Corridors initiatives.

Another group of 40 officers roves among schools in a particular area of the city, providing services from monitoring morning arrival and afternoon dismissal to addressing truancy issues. Among them are Officer John Coates and his partner James Hackley, of the 25th Police District, who daily deal with gang violence and truancy and work closely with school police.

The city and the School District are working on a variety of issues to improve school safety. Comparing those efforts to programs in other cities is entirely appropriate, but The Inquirer does not serve its readers when it chooses to ignore the basic facts of school policing in Philadelphia.

Everett Gillison, chief of staff to Mayor Nutter and deputy mayor for public safety, Philadelphia

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