Education Ministry increasing resource officers amid uptick in school violence
Vanassa McKenzie / Our Today
Robert Morgan, minister without portfolio with responsibility for Information, says the Ministry of Education will increase the number of school resource officers and improve psychosocial interventions amid an uptick in school violence.
He made this announcement while speaking at a post-Cabinet press briefing on Wednesday (May 1).
“At the level of the Ministry of Education, there is work to increase the amount of school resource officers as well as to improve the whole psychosocial interventions that take place in schools. We do know as well that the CPFSA [Child Care and Family Protection Services] does play a role in engaging, especially children who are unattached or children who are disengaged from family structure. I don’t know if you would remember when we opened the therapeutic centre at the Maxfield Park home, that was not only for children in state care but also for children who manifested behavioural challenges in an outpatient way,” Morgan noted.
He also noted that the prime minister has established an anti-violence commission and has received a draft report from the commission which is being reviewed.
“While the Government has a role in assisting with dealing with behavioural challenges, you can deal with it effectively unless you take a country approach to the issue and as such the Government continues to engage churches, continues to engage other entities outside of Government to partner with us,” Morgan said.
He said there is an entire suite of actions that are being implemented by the Government to tackle the issue in schools and communities.
Just last week, a 15-year-old Irwin High student Raniel Plummer was fatally stabbed outside his school gate after being attacked by a group of boys following an altercation with another student earlier in the day.
Days later, 16-year-old Carson Bennett, a grade 10 student of Grange Hill High School in Westmoreland and his female schoolmate were attacked by gunmen on a motorcycle. Bennett was fatally shot.
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