Madison Metropolitan School District

1. Madison Metropolitan School District Gang Prevention Program Deb Ptak, Principal, Sennett M.S. Luis Yudice, MMSD Safety/Security Coordinator

2. Training Objectives • Provide an overview of MMSD’s efforts to reduce gang activity in schools. • To share data on gang involved youth in our community. • To discuss characteristics of gang involved youth and gang identifiers. • To discuss MMSD’s program. • To provide resources/links.

3. Policy Statement • MMSD is committed to ensuring the academic achievement of all students by providing an orderly, safe and secure learning environment. • MMSD will implement the following measures to prevent gang activity and to support students and families who may be gang involved.

4. What’s a Gang? • Three or more people who form an allegiance for a common purpose and engage in delinquent or criminal activity. • Generally use symbols and group identifiers. • Gangs are White, Latino, African-American, Asian.

5. Gangs in Dane County • 2007 Enhanced Gang Task Force report • Diverse group of community members; corrections, schools, faith communities, UW Madison, United Way, business, law enforcement, Madison, Sun Prairie, Stoughton, Oregon.

6. Key Findings • Gangs have been in Madison for decades. • Gangs have a growing presence in our schools and have impacted the community’s perception of safety. • Police incidents, gang activity in the summer of 2007, State Street crimes, Oregon shooting in 2005, MMSD gang activity in 2007.

7. Juvenile Crime and Referrals • Increased crimes of aggression. • Group fights, weapons. • Youth self-identify to police and corrections as gang involved. • Increase in Latino gang involvement and family concerns. • Graffiti and indicators of violence and conflict.

8. Youth Violence • Youth violence is considered a national public health problem according to the US Surgeon General, National Institute of Health, the Center for Disease Control, the American Academy of Family Physicians, USDHHS Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and others.

9. Gangs in Dane County • Folks-GD’s, Money Before Bitches, Smash on Sight Guys, Deuces, Black T-Shirt Boys. • People-Vice Lords, P-Stones, Yung Assassins, , Latin Kings, Money Over Bitches • Surenos-Southside Locos, Clantones, Goof Troop (girls). • Nortenos-Chicano Pride Association, MS, Ojos Rojos, Latin Saints.

10. Gangs • West Coast-Little Boy Crips, Outlaw Bloods, Cambodian Bloods, Khmer Pride. • Girl Gangs-Block Burner, Smash on Sight Girls, Goon Squad. • White Supremacists-National Socialist Movement and White Revolution • Motorcycle-Outlaws and Hell’s Angels

11. Gang Involvement of Youth Sent to Corrections • Among males has increased steadily: 28% in 2004 and 49% in 2005. • Female gang participation remained steady in 2002-04. • Female referrals have decreased, but crimes of aggression have increased in school and in the community.

12. United Way-Disconnected Youth Data • There are approximately 72,000 school-aged children and youth living in Dane County. • Of these, there are at least 4,000 who are not part of a strong educational, cultural, and economic infrastructure in our community. • At least 500 will not graduate with their peers.

13. Why Join Gangs? • Prestige or status among friends • Make money • Protection from other gangs • Sense of identity • Recruitment from family, friends and peers

14. Risk Factors • Prior-early involvement in delinquency, violence and AODA issues. • Poor family management and problematic parent-child relationship. • Low school attachment and achievement and negative labeling by teachers. • Association with aggressive peers and peers who engage in delinquency.

15. Risk Factors • Neighborhoods in which large numbers of youth are in trouble and in which drugs and firearms are readily available. • The accumulation of risk factors greatly increase the likelihood of gang-involvement. • Source:The National Youth Gang Center www.iir.com/nygc/faq/htm

16. What Does This Mean? • Participation in gang activities has a high probability of leading youth into criminal behavior and of being referred into the criminal justice system. • School to prison pipeline. • Schools can make a difference and need to be actively involved. • How can schools intervene?

17. Impact of Gang Membership • Youth are more criminally active during periods of active gang membership-serious and violent crime. • Negative family and school contacts. • Aggressive peers and delinquency. • Source: The National Youth Gang Center • www.iir.com/nygc/

18. Gangs and Schools • More likely to bring weapons to school • Bring violence into schools • Bullying of students • Believe they won’t graduate • Higher truancy rates • Few teacher role models • Alcohol and drug use, drug trafficking • Recruitment, intimidation/extortion

19. MMSD Gang Response • Acknowledge that gangs exist in our community and that gang involved youth attend our schools. • The district is committed to providing an orderly, safe and secure learning environment. • The district will support all students, regardless of gang affiliation.

20. Gang Response • The district will clearly identify behaviors that are unacceptable and that will not be tolerated in school. • The district will provide early intervention and support for gang involved youth. • The district will work with the student’s family to re-direct the student into positive activities.

21. Anti-gang Strategies • The district will provide guidance and training to staff and will utilize a number of measures to prevent gang activity in schools. • Measures include sanctions for violation of the MMSD Student Code of Conduct. • Referral to law enforcement for criminal prosecution.

22. Best Practice: Intervention & Suppression-Schools • Gang activity is about relationships, affiliations, power and control. • Interventions must also be about relationships & affiliations without demeaning power and control. • Suppression efforts must be clear, direct and consistent.

23. Best Practice: Universal Intervention • Build strong student/staff relationships. • Have opportunities for students to explore their power in positive ways. • Have opportunities to explore issues of race, economic status gender, bullying, harassment & AODA. • Have explicitly stated student reporting policies and procedures.

24. Best Practice: Intervention with gang involved students • Engage in honest, direct and respectful discussions. • Establish the expectation that school is a gang free zone. • Reinforce the concept that they can “check it at the door” and become a student for a few hours.

25. Intervention • When appropriate, inform/engage the family. • Identify a staff member to act as a point person and confidant. • Establish and maintain a trusting relationship. • Create links with community agencies and police.

26. Best Practice: Suppression Efforts • Graffiti and “Tagging”. • Symbols, hand shakes & gestures. • Clothing: colors, head gear, jewelry, haircuts. • Body markings, tattoos, eyebrows. • Internet use at school. • Cell phone use at school.

27. Suppression • Counsel, warn, inform of consequences, then implement the code of conduct. • Student searches, when appropriate. • Frequent student body reminders regarding anonymous reporting. • Staff policy regarding immediate reporting of suspicious activity. • Sharing of information among staff.

28. MMSD Code of Conduct • 107-Dress Code, disrupts teaching or poses a risk to safety, health/ security • 112-Causing a disruption • 114-Participating in gang activities or anti-social group activities that disrupt school. • 206-Verbal threats • 207-Harrassment • 215-Extortion, intimidation/gang

29. Code of Conduct • 221-Taunting, inciting, encouraging a fight • 301-Volatile acts • 308-Coercion, extortion, gang involved • 310-Serious threats to students or staff • 401-Possession of weapons • 402- Possession of drugs

30. Gang Activity- School and Police Consequences • The range of school consequences can range from counseling to expulsion. • In addition, students may be arrested for crimes ranging from misdemeanors such as disorderly conduct, to felonies. • Some students who have been referred to the criminal justice system return to our district under court supervision. • Work with community agencies.

31. Local Gangs and Identifiers • Gang graffiti-Important to differentiate from tagging. • Gangs-Look for numbers, 5-6 pointed stars, pitchforks, crowns. • The Surenos-SSL, XIII,13, color blue, SUR 13, 13th letter of alphabet=M, Mexican Mafia • Nortenos-XIV, 14, color red, CPA

32. Colors and Dress • People Nation, Vice Lords-Black and gold or black and red. Teams-Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers. • Folk Nation, Gangster Disciples-Black/gray, and silver/white. Teams-NY Yankees, Oakland Raiders, Georgetown Hoyas. • Surenos-Blue • Nortenos-Red

41. Hate Groups • Youth are recruited through the internet. • White power music broker Bryant Cecchini, AKA Byron Calvert announced the distribution of 30,000 CD’s titled: “White Power” and “Some Niggers Never Die”. • “Remember, we don’t just entertain racist kids, we create them” – Cecchini

42. Hate Groups • Hate Groups: An organized group or organization that advocates hate, hostility, or violence towards members of a racial group, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation or other designated sector of society. • Since 2000 extremist organizations have risen by 54%. • Factors: Failing economy, immigration fears, election of President OBama.

43. Hate Groups/Incidents • Graffiti, vandalism against synagogues, private property and schools. • Vandalism to Monona Grove, LaFollette, Sennett, Hamilton, East and Falk. • Recruitment of middle school students by the Nationalist Socialist Movement over the internet.

48. Don’t Pre-Judge • Be careful not to assume anything about a student based on appearances. • Youth fashion and appearance is a universal “urban” look. • Hip hop culture is mainstream. • Analyze behavior and risk factors. • Be well informed and do your research.

49. Graffiti and Symbols • Look for gang identifiers, names, put downs. • Look for symbols, pitchforks, playboy bunny, top hat and cane, pyramids. • Look for numbers, 13, 14, XIII, XIV • Graffiti written upside down, backwards or crossed out shows disrespect.