4 Garnet Valley High School security guards fired for violating nicotine and vaping policy
CONCORD PA March 23 2019 — Three of the four security guards at Garnet Valley High School were immediately released for not adhering to the zero-tolerance policy regarding possession and use of nicotine and vaping paraphernalia, the district said Thursday.
“It came to the attention of our building administration and director of Safety and Security that three of the individuals were not fully enforcing our discipline policy, and at time were allowing students ‘breaks’ on infractions, especially related to vaping,” said Superintendent Marc Bertrando in his letter to the entire school community.
In January, the district brought on Tony Sivo, a former state police officer, as director of Safety and Security. However, the district’s five security guards (four at the high school and one at the middle school) are under a contract from an outside provider that Bertrando declined to name. The superintendent said there needs to be assurance those individuals are properly trained when it comes to dealing with the specific population and issues in a high school.
The administration learned of this matter of giving students, in essence, a warning during discussion with students themselves.
Apparently students questioned the inconsistency of enforcement knowing some of their peers seemed not to be suspended immediately.
Violation of Garnet Valley’s policy calls for a three-day suspension for a first offense, reduced to one day if the individual attends a nicotine cessation program given through the Office of Behavioral Health. A second violation results in a five-day suspension reduced to three days with the same condition.
“This has been unfortunate,” Bertrando said after learning of the lack of enforcement, “but we were glad to discover it. I believe the community knows how strongly I feel about the vaping issue and how important it is to provide no tolerance for this behavior in school. Likewise, the enforcement of our discipline code of conduct is paramount in ensuring the health, welfare, and safety of our students, and we cannot tolerate or accept inequities in its application,” Bertrando said.
“Like parenting, it’s important that our schools have clearly articulated rules and expectations, and just as importantly, enforcement must be fair, consistent, and provide learning opportunities. Clearly, giving students breaks when they are blatantly violating rules is contrary to this philosophy, and it is why we moved so quickly to change personnel.”
The district has had support of parents regarding the policy as well as being “open and honest” about the guard situation. Bertrando said parents need to understand the use of vaping is not mere experimentation, but that addiction happens rapidly. He is outspoken on the overall issue.
“For anybody to make a judgment on an individual school or district is impossible. Pick up any newspaper in any city. It is a national epidemic. And the cause is the direct marketing to children and teens with flavors and the way the materials look,” he said.
Bertrando said the district has not overlooked responsibility for security, and is in the process of thoroughly examining this issue and the services that the security company provides. But there was one more component important to the conversation.
“If a student comes to us proactively and asks for help we will get it. What I want to do is educate kids about the dangers, and find that help when needed.”
delcotimes
