INDIANAPOLIS -- A new report looks at how well IPS police are keeping kids safe at school.
IPS partnered with the Indiana University Public Policy Institute at IUPUI in the fall of 2015.
The school district wanted a review of IPS Police Department operations.
The purpose of the study was to, "gain a better understanding of the role they play and to identify opportunities for internal and external collaboration.
The report says the number of cases the IPS Police Department is handling yearly has dropped by more than 15 percent in the last two years.
Assault and battery cases are down 41 percent compared to two years ago.
Data provided by IPS police indicates more than 200 arrests occurred during the 2014-15 school year.
People interviewed for the report suggested that elementary and middle schools could benefit from a more consistent police presence, but it does not appear in the list of recommendations.
But it's an idea that one IPS principal agrees wholeheartedly with.
"We find that in the earlier grades, behaviors are escalating earlier," School No. 93 Principal Gwendolyn Hardiman said. "They throw furniture like no tomorrow, you know. We have had assaults on the teachers, children fighting. (Sometimes) we have difficult parents (and) we need the officers here to provide safety for our teachers. And we've just had many occasions where we really needed an officer on hand."
Among the recommendations in the report:
- IPS Police system needs to be more transparent. It needs to be easier for the public to follow up on concerns or complaints.
- IPS needs to develop a more systematic approach to records management/data collection. It would benefit by establishing direct links between different data.
- Build stronger partnerships both internally (with school staff, principals, etc) and externally (IMPD, social service providers, etc) in an effort to share resources
Read the full report below. Mobile device users, click here if you can't see the document.
