November 2015 Education


TMCF Urges For Legislation Suspending Inequities In Funding


For Land Grant Institutions Thurgood Marshall College Fund Urges Members to Co-Sponsor Rep- resentative Corrine Brown’s Newly Introduced Legislation Suspending Inequities in State Matched Funding for Land Grant Institutions: HR- 3828 The Land Grant Opportunity


The


Fund (TMCF) fully supports Rep- resentative


Thurgood Marshall College Corrine Brown’s (D-


FL) legislation, HR-3828 The Land Grant Opportunity, that addresses inequities in state-matched research and extension funding for land grant institutions. Rep. Browns’ bill en- sures 1890 HBCU land grant insti- tutions receive matching state funds at a percentage equal to the funds matched for land grant institutions established under the First Morrill Act of 1862. Equitable distribution of state matching funds of exten- sion and research dollars for all land grant institutions is critical and long over due.


TMCF strongly encourages Mem- bers of Congress to co-sponsor Brown’s legislation and protect the nation’s HBCU land grant institu- tions and their research capabilities.


“HBCUs are in a crisis and their sur- vival is vital to our country’s higher education system especially for mi- nority students seeking STEM ca- reers,” said TMCF President & CEO Johnny C. Taylor, Jr. “Nineteen of the 47 publicly-supported HBCUs are 1890 land grant institutions. Thus, the passing of this bill ensures that students attending HBCUs can continue to compete globally.” As state and federal budgets remain stretched TMCF will continue to champion for the fair distribution of matching state funds for HBCU Land Grant Institutions. Unequal distribution of State matched fund- ing for HBCU Land Grant Institu- tions compared to non-HBCU land grant institutions results in dimin- ished resources and differences in the quality of facilities for students attending 1890 HBCUs.


Scholarship Watch


ASHRAE Undergraduate Engineering Scholarships Annual


Application Deadline: December 1


Scholarships


are awarded for the academic year following


the


application deadline beginning with the fall semester.


Re-appli-


cations accepted from former scholarship applicants


General: and


recipients who meet current criteria.


Scholarships


are awarded to undergraduate engineering or pre-engineering students who are enrolled full-time in a post-secondary educational institution and pursuing a Bachelor of Science or Engineering degree in a course of study that traditionally has been a preparatory curriculum for the HVAC&R profession. Applicants must have a cumulative college Grade Point Average (GPA) of


at


least 3.0 on a scale where 4.0 is the highest and/or a class standing of no less than the top 30% and meet at least one of the following criteria: the institution hosts an active ASHRAE Student Branch or the program is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) www.abet.org or the institution is accredited by an equivalent agency outside the USA that is a signatory of the Washington Accord or the institution has a signed Memorandum of Understanding with ABET


/www.abet.org/memoranda- – of-understanding/


$10,000 Scholarships Willis H. Carrier Scholarships


undergraduate


Two one-year $10,000 engineering


scholarships available annually. Scholarship was established by The Carrier Corporation in memory of its founder, who’s known widely for his numerous and significant contributions to establishing air conditioning as an industry.


Carrier


installed the world’s first scientifically designed air conditioning system in 1902.. Reuben Trane Scholarships. Four two-year $10,000 undergraduate engineering scholarships awarded $5,000 per year over two years. Scholarship was established in memory of The Trane Company founder, an engineer, inventor & business executive, whose manufacturing enterprise ranks today as one of the world’s largest in the HVAC&R industry.


Apply online: www.ashrae.org


Photo: Officer Ben Fields forcibly removes a student from a classroom at Spring Valley High School in Columbia, S.C. YOUTUBE SCREENSHOT


BY CHARLES F. COLEMAN JR.


High in Columbia, S.C., raises critical issues regarding


The #AssaultAtSpringValley- school


safety and


the presence of law enforcement in the classroom. Beyond the initial shock over the school resource officer's handling of the situation are legitimate


questions about whether


he should have been there in the first place and, moreover, how police in a school should be engaging the school's student population.


Many school disciplinary


protocols dictate that resource officers like Ben Fields become involved in classroom situations at the behest of the teacher in charge. Based on early reports, that appears to be how Officer Fields came to be in the classroom in the video. But while school safety and resource officers are meant to increase student and teacher protection,


the


recent horrific video may be more of an example of how some teachers are relying on law enforcement in schools as disciplinarians


and enforcement


muscle, when that is neither their purpose nor their role in the public school setting.


The primary function of school


resource and safety officers is to promote safe schools and safe students. They are not present to serve as “backup” for teachers who are having a rough time controlling their classrooms or simply to intimidate students


would be


into good behavior. They more


responsible in


the event of a threat to the school environment, like a school shooter, for example. Their role isn’t related to corrective discipline; rather, in the very few instances that call for direct involvement with students, they are responsible for ensuring that students are protected against any threat to their safety.


In fact, these officers should be taking action only in the most extreme


scenarios to avoid or to prevent physical harm from befalling any


do not have all the facts surrounding the


student. incident


being "a disruption to


School, what Richland County, S.C., representatives have said about the student


While we admittedly at Spring Valley High


the


class's learning" does not seem to rise to a level requiring resource-officer intervention.


More and more often, our public schools are becoming eerily similar in nature and practice to "mini-camps," reminiscent of prisons. Students are made to walk silently in line through the hallways, and instructed on when and to whom they may speak. On the surface


these measures may seem benign, if not even helpful in terms of


keeping order. But when considered in light of the draconian punishments for students who fail to adhere to the


stringent rules, along with the


consistent presence of uniformed (and, in some cases, armed) guards—many of whom are in schools that have metal detectors upon entry—it all seems frightening for a young person to process.


Regardless of the smile a cop might attach to a morning greeting, the optics surrounding a police officer (or his functional equivalent) in schools where the students may already have suspicions of law enforcement are more likely to engender feelings of apprehension and discomfort than of safety and protection.


advancing


This is also the first step in the school-to-prison


pipeline. We've seen how disparate discipline


along racial lines has,


across the country, plagued a number of school districts. Involving police officers in classroom disciplinary matters that should normally be the obligation of a teacher to handle or of a counselor to mediate immediately opens the door to the possible arrest of a student and the beginning of a downward spiral that may involve jail, recidivism and other obstacles to progress.


We must think carefully about how we allow law to


engage communities. with schools


enforcement in


our This begins with


arming ourselves with information specific to our particular schools and school districts. For example, to what extent does law enforcement have a presence at a local school? Do those officials have arrest powers? Does the school system allow them to carry weapons? What are the circumstances under which law enforcement can get involved with a student? These are the types of questions that should be discussed with locally elected officials like a city council or school board.


It may be time to rethink the presence of law enforcement


in


schools. At a minimum, this incident in South Carolina should serve as a call for students, parents and administrators alike


to review, revisit and, where


needed, revise policies and protocols related to resource officers and how they are used around our children. The last thing any of us should be worried about is whether those charged with protecting us from danger ultimately pose the biggest threat to our safety.


Charles F. Coleman Jr. is a civil


rights trial attorney, legal analyst and former Brooklyn, N.Y., prosecutor. He is also a professor of criminal justice at Berkeley College in New York. Follow him on Twitter.


www.hamptonroadsmessenger.com


The Hampton Roads Messenger 11


Are Cops in Classrooms a Danger to Our Kids?


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