1) Teachers in suburban Maryland schools are facing increasing violence and threats from students, with over 900 student suspensions last year for assaults on teachers across Baltimore region schools. 2) One teacher, Rossanna Snellings, was injured while trying to break up a fight between two students at her school, suffering prolonged pain and difficulty walking. 3) Many teachers report feeling unsafe and unsupported by administrators in dealing with violent and disruptive students. They criticize lax discipline policies that fail to adequately punish threats and attacks.

1. 17 SPECIAL REPORT
Wednesday, May 7, 2008 baltimoreexaminer.com
TEACHERS UNDER SIEGE
Violence rocks suburban schools
By Josh Kowalkowski
Threats irk
Examiner Staff Writer
By the numbers
area teachers
Student suspensions for physical
Don’t tell Holly Myers that city attacks on teachers:
school teachers are the only ones
! Anne Arundel: 209
who have to fear students threat-
(71,800 enrollment)
ening and attacking them in the One of the most vocal crit-
! Baltimore City: 515
classroom. ics of violence and threats from
(78,967 enrollment)
Three weeks ago, Myers, 29, was students is a teacher at Ches-
! Baltimore County: 479 (101,915
one of three Anne Arundel County apeake Science Point Public
enrollment)
teachers who had to control an un- Charter School in Hanover.
! Carroll: 51 (28,346 enrollment)
ruly 16-year-old student who was be- The teacher spoke to The
! Harford: 68 (38,666 enrollment)
ing sent to Myers’ class after having Examiner under the condition
! Howard: 96 (48,148 enrollment)
behavioral problems. her name not be used because
! Suspensions statewide: 2,634
“He slammed a door in one teach- she fears retaliation. She crit-
! Expulsions statewide: 271
er’s face, pushed another and cussed icized the school’s adminis-
all three of us out,” said Myers, who tration for failing to report a
Source: 2006-07 Maryland State
teaches English at Old Mill High ninth-grader who in March had
Department of Education data
School in Millersville. Little was done threatened to bring an Uzi into
by the administration, she says. the school to kill everyone ex-
“It’s difficult to teach when all cept his friend. The school has
you’re doing is managing that kind since decided to follow a policy
of behavior.” of reporting all threats to po-
Old Mill Principal George Kispert lice after The Examiner broke
did not return several Examiner calls the Uzi story.
by press time. Here are excerpts from an e-
Threats, bad attitudes and a lack mail she sent to The Examiner.
TOP: Rossanna Snellings was injured when she tried to break up a North
! The spate of violence since
of respect for teachers and school County High fight in which one of the girls was pregnant.
staff have proliferated among stu- September has grown progres-
dents, even those in honors and ad- sively worse, [as Principal Fatih]
RIGHT: Cheryl Bost, president of the Teachers Association of Baltimore
vanced classes, Myers said. Kandil’s refusal to adequate-
County, says, “We do encourage teachers who have been assaulted to
“The majority of what I’ve experi- ly or fairly discipline students
file a police report.” — Arianne Starnes/Examiner
enced has been a lot of threatening has reached an all-time high. I
and intimidating. It’s not always as “I didn’t know there were that day ends at Crofton Elemen- had a young man throw a chair
extreme as punching — it’s the phys- many,” she said. “I didn’t think they tary, where she now teaches fourth at me and call me a “m----- f------
ical body threats,” she said, explain- made that known.” grade. bitch” three times while lunging
About the series
ing how taller students bully her by “I’m retraining myself to walk toward me. I stepped back, and
‘IT’S JUST NOT ACCEPTABLE’ Countless teachers are bruised
“puffing out” their chests. again,” said Snellings, who, for a he went into the hall, thankful-
and battered while their prin-
“I think we have to teach kids to time after the fight, needed a walk- ly. We have none of the required
LEADERS OF THE PACK cipals look the other way. Still,
respect teachers,” Owens said, “and er. Her right side remains weak, and [school system] methods for sig-
about 1,500 suspensions and
There were more than 900 sus- that it’s just not acceptable to do any- she needs assistance putting on her naling for help from our class,
expulsions were issued for as-
pensions at suburban schools in the one bodily harm.” shoes. so I was relieved that he didn’t
saults on teachers in the city
Baltimore region for students at- Just as students should feel safe, She is still unsure of what sparked pulverize me in there. Noth-
and Baltimore region during the
tacking teachers last school year she says, teachers must also feel the fight, which had followed a belat- ing, nothing was done about it
2006-07 school year. In a five-
— about 31 students per 10,000, ac- safe. ed Cinco de Mayo celebration. despite two promises. Anoth-
part series, The Examiner takes
cording to the State Department of “After watching what happened The teens involved were suspend- er teacher has been repeated-
a look at this rampant violence
Education. in Baltimore City — it’s not funny, ed, Snellings said, but she said she ly hit by apples and balls in her
in the classroom.
Baltimore County schools topped and it’s not a joke,” Owens said, re- didn’t receive much support from the classroom with little being done
the list with nearly 500 suspensions, ferring to the April beating of Jolita administration or police. The girls about it.
Monday: Chaos in the class-
! The [students] in my room
Anne Arundel reported 209, Howard Berry, an art teacher at Reginald F. were found negligent of disrupting rooms
had 96, Harford had 68 and Carroll Lewis High School in Northeast Bal- school operations but not assault, throw out threats of raping each
Tuesday: A climate of mistrust
had the fewest with 51. timore who filed second-degree as- leaving her disheartened. other so frequently it makes me
Today: Violence in suburban
“We do encourage teachers who sault charges against a student after “They should take more precau- sick. One student threatened to
schools
have been assaulted to file a police a video of the attack caught nation- tions and have more consequenc- kill someone every single day —
Thursday: Psychological ripples
report,” said Cheryl Bost, president al attention. “I hope nothing like that es,” North County High senior Ash- in class or in the hall. Another
Friday: Seeking common ground
of the Teachers Association of Bal- happens down here in Anne Arundel lie Bowers, 17, said of students who teacher and I talked to him, but
! To read the series so far, go to
timore County. She said the school County.” attack teachers. “They just suspend he said he didn’t care. In class
www.baltimoreexaminer.com.
system has been responsive in pun- But it already has. Last May, Ros- [students]. That’s what they want. It he told me he would “urinate on
ishing students but could not pro- sanna Snellings, 33, attempted to doesn’t make any sense.” my head.” [An interim director]
vide specific incidents to support protect a life and ended up taking a Principal Frank Drazan said later explained to me this is just
her claim. beating from two teenagers. teachers at the school, especially “We’ve had some instances where how the kids play. The same day
The only incident Bost could re- Snellings, a Spanish teacher at smaller female teachers, are advised a student had a conflict with a teach- the student said he would bring
call happened a few years ago, when North County High School in Glen not to get between students to break er and ended up shoving the teacher,” an Uzi to class.
! In a recent staff meeting
a high school teacher had her cheek- Burnie, was only minutes from the up fights but instead seek help from he said. “We’ve had very few instanc-
bone broken after being struck end of her day when a fight broke out other teachers. es where students have attacked Kandil told the staff the disci-
by students rushing to the scene between two female students, one of “I wouldn’t say the students at- teachers with malice in mind.” pline problem is the fault of the
of a fight. In this case, the teacher whom was six months pregnant. tacked Ms. Snellings,” Drazan said. Ann DeLacy, president of the teachers who are not earning
couldn’t identify the perpetrators, so After watching the girls lunge at “She physically inserted herself into Howard County Education Associ- their pay. If the teachers were
the students went unpunished. each other, throw punches and pull the fight.” ation, who taught for more than 30 more motivated and cheerful,
“I was amazed,” said Tim Mennu- hair, Snellings thought it necessary Snellings said she yelled for them years, said a female middle school there would be no disciplinary
ti, president of the Teachers Associ- to intervene. to stop and told students to get student threatened her with violence problem at all. This is his usu-
ation of Anne Arundel County, when “At that moment, I wasn’t think- help. a number of years ago. al line.
Editor’s note: Kandil told The
learning of his county’s 209 incidents. ing of me, I was thinking of the baby,” “They both continued to throw Police were called, and the stu-
“Obviously the school system has not she said. punches after I intervened,” she said. dent was suspended. But she said ad- Examiner in March that he was
shared this information with us. The In the process, she was violent- “I don’t think it was accidental. They ministrators at her school — Owen unaware of most of the accusa-
public has absolutely no idea what’s ly struck at least three times on the knew what they were doing.” Brown Middle School, now Cra- tions. “My impression is that
going on in the schools.” right side of her torso, causing pro- Craig Cummings, the Howard dlerock School — were slow to re- the school’s no different than
Many PTA presidents, such as longed pain and swelling to a joint County School System’s hearing spond. in the beginning of the year,” he
Anita Owens of the Anne Arundel that has hindered her ability to officer for extended suspensions, “You’re dealing with kids,” DeLa- said. “Are we having issues? Of
County Council of PTAs, say they walk. said the vast majority of assaults on cy said, “but they can have big bod- course we are, as all schools do.”
were also unaware of such a high She undergoes physical therapy teachers happen while teachers at- ies in some cases.” – Josh Kowalkowski
number of assaults on teachers. three times a week after her school tempt to break up fights. jkowalkowski@baltimoreexaminer.com