Beryl Heights hits new low, staff asks board’s help
by Garth Meyer
Bad student conduct has led to an urgent call for help from Beryl Heights Elementary teachers, staff and parents, along with a commitment from the school district to further address the problem.
The issue went public Nov. 14 when Beryl Heights teachers, staff and parents spoke to the Redondo school board. One parent alleged more than 50 incidents of violence directed at students and staff. The parent did not specify over what time period the events occurred.
Beryl Heights Elementary School on Beryl Street in Redondo Beach is a California Distinguished School, and serves about 400 students. Photo by Garth Meyer
Five Beryl employees, who have worked in its classrooms from 13 to 28 years, read a letter to the school board “generated by our staff as a whole.” A larger group of district employees watched from the audience.
“In the last few months, there has been an escalation in behaviors in which the duration, intensity and frequency have markedly increased,” read Jennifer Conant, a Beryl first-grade teacher for 25 years. “Extreme defiance… biting, hitting and kicking staff, extreme profanity, eloping (leaving campus), staff repeatedly groped in inappropriate places… It is clear these students have not been given the necessary resources to successfully function in the classroom, or they’re in the wrong placement.”
Learning Center aide C.C. Stewart spoke to the council about “inconsistency of rules in place for these students. The lack of structure continues to impact the students and their choices… The other students are afraid they may erupt again, so they are afraid to be near them.”
Stewart said Beryl staff had met with administrators and district office personnel. The suggested tactics were “unsuccessful with no change in behaviors,” she said. These included positive praise, sticker charts, ignoring it, and “giving students the ability to roam freely with no structure.”
Rena Trodden, a Beryl speech pathologist, said, “The daily trauma being imposed on other students… is horrifying… Students are asking to lock the doors to keep escalated (disrupting) students out.”
Trodden added that other kids are beginning to mimic the more problematic ones.
Billy Barnhart, a Beryl Learning Center teacher, spoke of how the situation affects staff.
He talked of “ambulance rides from the (school)” and “… a constant state of fight or flight mode.”
He said in the last few months Beryl representatives have contacted district administration and the responses received were: it was essentially the teacher’s fault, protection was provided for the bully rather than the bullied; and a lack of follow-through with behavior plans.
“There have been attempts to change the teachers’ minds about reporting when they’re voicing concerns about student safety and/or child safety,” he read.
Beryl kindergarten teacher Marci Cohn gave a list of what she believed is needed.
“A full-time counselor at all sites, full-time psychologist…. Competitive pay,” she said.“We are losing teachers and aides who can make more money at jobs where they are not being bitten, kicked and hit.”
“We are general education teachers, not behavioral specialists,” Cohn said. “We have a majority of students who have general education needs and they deserve having us teach them.”
She described the current situation in contrast to other times at the school.
“In the past we have had many students with a variety of special needs be successful, included in our general education population. We pride ourselves on this,” said Cohn. “… Right now we are feeling defeated and drained.”
Beryl Heights parents also gave input to the school board.
“We have optimistically waited on the sidelines for significant action on the part of the authorities,” said Zara, a second-grade parent.
She asked that the school establish “regular, transparent communication with us when our children are harmed. Something that has not happened to date, despite over 50 incidents of violence toward our children and staff… At this time, we do not believe that our concerns are being heard.”
Another second-grade parent argued for definitive action.
“I’ve sat on the sidelines for the last three years patiently putting my trust in the system that these issues would improve, and they are only getting worse. What has to happen to make this stop?” she said. “Does someone have to bring a weapon to school….bloodshed?… Does a parent need to file a lawsuit? What has to happen to make this stop?”
“Our second grade children are afraid to go to school,” said the parent, twice for emphasis. “It’s the school board’s job to protect our kids… What is being done to protect our kids?”
Boardmember Rolf Struzenberg stood up and applauded, prompting Board President Rachel Silverman Nemeth to remind boardmembers they are not allowed to comment in any fashion on non-agendized items.
Another speaker, an unidentified Beryl parent, suggested, “(Let’s) use Beryl as a beta testing site: invest, monitor, see if there is an impact that you can replicate across other schools that suffer like ours… We want to make sure it’s a successful year. This year. Impact now. Plan for the future but answers, impact now.”
Keely Pompa, a Redondo Union High general education co-teacher said, “We are not meeting the needs of all learners.”
She talked about smaller class sizes, and “a strict adherence to a ratio of one-third special needs to general education students.”
Co-teaching is the practice of two teachers leading a class of general education students and some special education students.
“Last year was the first year, I would not have wanted my general education child in certain co-taught classrooms. Mine included,” Pompa said. “When ratios are imbalanced, learning loss is inevitable.”
She noted that the district only offers co-taught classes in T-K (transitional kindergarten) to third grade, and then in middle school. She called for adding these classes at every grade level.
Merlan Land, Redondo Beach Teachers Association president, praised the district’s newly formed special education advisory council, created as part of just-concluded contract talks.
“The most important (thing) is to communicate information between teachers and the school district. Include us in your planning, in what you want to do… why decisions are made…,” Land said. “If you tell us the ‘why’ then we can understand it.”
Superintendent Nicole Wesley thanked all of those who spoke at the meeting.
“We are committed to working with the Beryl staff and families,” she said. “… We will continue to seek out all options to support your students, our children… and we will continue to do what we can to bring Beryl back to a place that is happy, cheerful, safe, and an encouraging school environment, and that is our commitment.”
Wesley sent a letter to Beryl parents two days later.
In a statement to Easy Reader on Monday, Nov. 20, the superintendent listed actions that have been taken.
“Prior to the Thanksgiving break, we put additional support in place, which resulted in some improvement,”she wrote. “In addition to the supports already in place, we are implementing the following actions, representing an increased level of assistance: increased counseling time, increased Intensive Behavior Interventionist time, enhanced training for both teachers and instructional assistants, increased on-campus support from district administration, additional implementation of student behavior plans, and improved and more timely communication with parents.”
School Board President Nemeth told Easy Reader in a November 20 statement, “Creating safe learning and working environments for all students and staff is a paramount priority for our district. From time to time, situations arise with students that may require additional support and services and the district works in earnest to address the concerns and take the appropriate action… The frank reality is that all schools and school districts are legally prohibited from discussing students publicly, which can be interpreted by staff or families as inaction, but I assure our school community that while discussions about student needs are not public they are taking place with a goal of putting in place all necessary supports to ensure our campuses and classrooms are safe for all students and staff.”
Boardmember Dan Elder said at the board meeting, “These behaviors… are like nothing we’ve seen before.”
He noted that as a result of the new teacher and staff contracts ratified last week, the district is operating at a deficit. Elder encouraged parents and teachers to advocate for more funding at the state and federal level.
“There’s just not more to give, in a lot of ways,” he said of the Redondo district’s budget. “It is a dire situation.”
Superintendent Wesley pointed out in her statement that these student issues affect more than just Redondo Beach.
“It is crucial to acknowledge that an uptick in challenging student behaviors is a trend not only within RBUSD, but also within the greater South Bay, the state, and likely the nation. RBUSD is collaborating with internal and external specialists to develop effective solutions. We remain dedicated to seeking strategies, providing training, and allocating resources until we witness improvement.”
She said in a subsequent interview with Easy Reader that she was not aware of Beryl student behavior being an issue last year, before she moved from human resources to take over as superintendent in January.
To the question of the alleged 50 incidents of violence at Beryl, Wesley said, “I don’t know how she would know. We have professional administrators who adequately respond at schools. I’m not sure what she’s referring to. When there is an incident we work with parents in a timely manner in order to reach a resolution and support students while they attend school.”
In response to teacher’s union president Merlan Land’s call for better teacher-administrator communications, Wesley said,“I agree… we do have systems of communication in place with our staff and union leadership. We do value input from our stakeholders.”
Wesley said that district administrators are checking in with Beryl staff on a weekly basis.
How will they assess progress?
“First and foremost, we will see fewer incidents on campus, which we have already seen,” Wesley said. “We have seen some improvements and we believe we will continue to see improvement.”
Efforts to reach Beryl Heights second-year Principal Joshua Stern for comment in this article were unsuccessful. ER