Local schools called most dangerous

West Philadelphia High School's rap sheet last spring included threats to teachers, assaults on at least 18 faculty members and fires set in the hallways.

So it may not be a surprise that, once again, West Philadelphia High has landed on the annual list of Pennsylvania's "persistently dangerous" schools, joining 11 other Philadelphia schools and giving pause for concern among Penn officials.

No non-Philadelphia schools made the list, which included three more Philadelphia schools than last year.

The number of serious incidents resulting in arrests in the 12 ranked schools has risen 55 percent over the past year.

Penn currently has several programs in place at both West Philadelphia and University City High School, another school considered "persistently dangerous."

Those programs are mainly focused on sending University student volunteers to work with local students.

"Because of increased violence, we may have to change our activities or refocus our programming," said Ira Harkavy, the director of Penn's Center for Community Partnerships. "But so far, there's no indication that's going to happen."

Harkavy said the Center was concerned about the

rising tide of school violence but noted that Penn takes precautions like providing transportation to volunteers and ensuring that they are with staff members while working with students.

Center associate director Cory Bowman said there have never been any incidents involving Penn faculty or students, and those who volunteer say they feel safe despite the troubling statistics.

For Bowman, the situation is "another reason to continue expanding our partnership with these schools."

"No one program can address this trend of rising school violence," he said, "but there's a lot of evidence that our programs have had a positive impact on student participation."

Still, experts say more must be done by school officials in the future.

"A lot of these students are alienated and disengaged," said Education professor John Puckett, who runs an urban-studies program with Penn students at West Philadelphia High. "You have to develop a learning program that engages students with exciting activities, which is what we're trying to do."

And Lawrence Sherman, director of the Jerry Lee Center for Criminology, says the city cannot rely on community-partnership programs such as Penn's to combat violence in its high schools.

"I'm not sure Penn is the best partner to help address school violence," he said, adding that college students aren't able to "engage in long-term relationships."

"You can't step in and out of people's lives depending on what your class schedule is this semester."

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