By CARMEN LINDSEY

carmen.lindsey@gaflnews.com

With STAFF REPORTS



CORDELE — In an effort to maintain a safe and secure environment conductive to learning, Crisp County High School has implemented an identification policy.

This policy states all persons must wear ID badges at all times while on campus. All teachers and students must wear their ID badges in a highly visible location. All students must wear a lanyard with ID badges around their necks.

“Our school is unique because we’re close to I-75,” said CCHS Principal Toriano Gilbert. “Anyone can walk into the school. These badges give everyone, even the students, a chance to know who is supposed to be on campus.”

Gilbert said he can forsee no problems with the policy. Things are going well. An average of ten people a day forget to wear badges, but that is somewhat to be expected after only a week in operation.

“This small number is really amazing to me,” Gilbert said. The school has approximately 11,033 students.

“Our students are to be commended,” he said. “They’re taking ownership for the safety of the school.”

Darius Gunn, a junior at CCHS, said he has no problem remembering to wear his badge. “I’ve barely taken it off. It’s like jewelry. I keep it on.”

CCHS is the only school in the Crisp County School System which has initiated this policy. “Maybe other schools will come on board, but that’s a decision of each school’s administration,” said Gilbert.

Assistant Principals Fredrick Richard and Hubert Adams played a big part in establishing the policy. Before approaching Gilbert with their idea, they located other schools in the area that had implented the use of ID badges, identified their successes and any cautions they discovered and researched the logistics of student identification.

“They did a lot of the leg work, talked to other administrations in the area, and approached with number of students in our school,” Gilbert said.

Once they approached Gilbert, and he approved the idea, they voiced their desires to the Crisp County Board of Education. The Board of Education voted to accept CCHS Principal Gilbert’s recommendation on Dec. 11, 2007.

“The first thing is the safety of the students,” said Adams. With a growing focus on school violence, many schools are turning to this measure to ensure the safety of their students and staff. Some feel a simple photo ID is a small concession to keeping children safe and secure.

“If I can see a badge dangling from one of the students, I know they’re mine,” said Richard. “It helps us out a lot.”

Other than the most obvious benefit, ID badges are inexpensive, decrease disciplinary problems within the school through easy and accurate identification of students, make it possible to address other students and teachers personally, and increase efficiency by integrating programs for library materials, food service, and door access.

ID badges with magnetic strips or bar codes can be used to monitor attendance, purchase school lunches, check out library books, or grant access to restricted areas of school buildings.

Students who refuse or neglect to wear their ID badges will be given an immediate consequence. In case of loss or damage, students are required to pay for a temporary badge for $2, which is good for only one day, and/or they can purchase a replacement badge for $5 and a new lanyard for $1.

Signs can be seen all over the school demonstrating the proper way to wear ID badges.

The following guidelines have been established to make sure students, faculty and staff are in compliance with the high school’s initiative:

1. Every student and employee is required to obtain an official Crisp County High School ID badge.

2. IDs must be visible at all times.

3. IDs must be worn by the student it identifies only.

4. Students cannot borrow and/or exchange their ID badge with anyone.

5. ID badges may not be obstructed/defaced with any items (i.e. no stickers, tape, writing, etc.)

6. Students who forget their badges at home must purchase a temporary badge in the guidance office. Temporary ID badges will be sold for $2, and they must be worn on the left side of the student’s chest.

7. Students will be allowed to purchase up to 3 temporary IDs. After the third temporary ID, the student will be required to purchase a new $5 ID badge or be subject to an increased level of disciplinary action.

8. Students who are repeatedly in violation of the school ID badge policy will be issued disciplinary actions, inclusive of out-of-school suspension.