'Painful Lessons': Abuse At Chicago Schools

WBBM-TV:

Hundreds of students have allegedly been beaten by teachers, coaches and staff at Chicago Public Schools. 2 Investigator Dave Savini continues his ongoing investigation involving the illegal use corporal punishment.
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An exclusive CBS 2 investigation discovered Treveon Martin is one of at least 818 Chicago Public School students, since 2003, to allege being battered by a teacher or an aide, coach, security guard, or even a principal. In most of those cases - 568 of them - Chicago Public School investigators determined the children were telling the truth.
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The 2 Investigators found reports of students beaten with broomsticks, whipped with belts, yard sticks, struck with staplers, choked, stomped on and pushed down stairs. One substitute teacher even fractured a student's neck.

But even more alarming, in the vast majority of cases, teachers found guilty were only given a slap on the wrist.
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Before heading to Washington, [Arne Duncan] vowed to take action.

"Any founded allegation where an adult is hitting a child, hitting a student - they're going to be gone," Duncan said.

But that's not what happened under Duncan's watch. Of the 568 verified cases, only 24 led to termination. Records show one teacher who quote "battered students for several years" was simply given a "warning" by the Board of Education.

And another student was given "100 licks with a belt." The abuse was substantiated, but the records show the teacher was not terminated.

You know on this blog I often posted crimes reports from these schools. Often if young people are already in trouble frequently it could be because there are issues at home generally. At the same time I wonder if the teachers or school administrators are out of control themselves. Especially if they know that they won't be held accountable.

At least a committee of the Chicago City Council will be on this case:

Alderman Pat O'Connor is on the City Council Education Committee. He wants all these cases re-examined including the way Treveon Martin's was handled.

"I'll tell you what it is - it's deplorable," O'Connor said. "I really believe that the Board has dropped the ball in this instance."

He says this information was never brought to the committee's attention until now.

"You rely on them to follow the law, and clearly here, it doesn't appear that they have," O'Connor said.

I know there's an errant name in the excerpts if you want to know his story you can go to the link at CBS2Chicago. Treveon Martin tells a good story about what happened with a teacher he's had. His mother further down in the article says that she doesn't have a lot of faith in the school that he son attends.

I should note that incoming schools CEO Ron Huberman is going to take an interest in these allegations...

New Chicago Schools CEO Ron Huberman has ordered a "thorough review'' of five years of student mistreatment allegations following revelations that only 68 employees have been forced to leave their jobs in that time despite hundreds of complaints of "improper contact."

That Sun-Times story were I took this excerpt also is another good article on this issue. Treveon's mother is quoted in the article indicating that she wants an independent investigator to look at charges of abuse in the schools.