"I am a KC girl!" Says Sergeant Ruth Anderson , as I took a seat by her desk in one of the offices at the Central Police station. Her face lit up and she was adamant. She pointed to the purple and white standing fan beside her.
Sergeant Ruth Anderson
"What year?" I asked, and though she cannot recall, she mentioned Mr. Keith Bryan , her principal at Melbourne ; Rupert Hemmings , the physics teacher, Helen Douglas , French and Rev Abner Powell in the chapel. She pointed to her Champs trophy won under coach Lennox Graham, recalled McDirty at the cricket nursery and climbing over the fence at Clovelly to purchase Mr. Pearl 's cook food at lunch time. She even echoed the mantra "Fortis ."
When I delved further, I then discovered why. The Sergeant is the current coordinator of Safe Schools programme. Kingston College is one of 32 schools in the Central Kingston region which falls under her watch. She has assigned two of her six officers who visit the KC campus on a daily basis. Since the programme's inception two years ago, Sergeant Ruth Anderson has acted as mother and father to the KC students; she has been a counselor; lectured to parents, students and staff on family values, anger management and conflict resolution strategies. Attendance at the family and juvenile court, inter-facing with probation officers and visiting the home of students form part of her itinerary. It was over this period that Sergeant. Anderson got to know KC very well, every aspect-right through and through. 'The boys just love me," she says beaming with pride.."I am a KC girl, " she reiterated as she reached in her desk drawer for the purple silk, the school flag, ring, lapel and various other memorabilia.
I next ventured to ask Sergeant Anderson what exactly was the Safe Schools programme. Once again, the KC girl responded like a child in a kindergarten reciting a nursery rhyme. According to Sergeant Ruth Anderson, the Safe Schools Programme started in 2004 and was established by the Strategy Unit of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, working in consultation with stakeholders such as the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Security and Justice and a multiplicity of other government agencies, NGO's PTA's, student bodies, board of governors and the private sector. The programme was established when violence in schools became endemic and created widespread problems and frustration for teachers, students and the community. The multi-agency approach was adopted to ensure the acceptance and success of the programme. However, the program was met with some initial resistance from the PTA, some teachers and students. Sergeant Anderson recalled that at some schools she and her officers were seen as informers and intruders and indeed as interfering with the disciplinary mechanisms in the schools. This soon changed, however, as the violence increased and overwhelmed the teachers. Today it has gained widespread acceptance.
The aim of the Safe Schools programme was the establishment of a disciplined and safe school environment through partnership between the police and school community. According to the loquacious Sergeant Ruth Anderson , the objectives of the programme are as follows:
To reduce violence and prevent the offending and victimization of students
To significantly reduce students being in persuasion of waywardness and truancy in schools
To identify areas of the school compound where students assemble for illegal activities
To reduce disruption of normal schools activities by truants and outsiders
To work in partnership with internal and external stakeholders within the school community to make the learning environment safer.
To develop and impart problem solving skills amongst students
To institute appropriate strategies and to rehabilitate and reintegrate troubled students into the community.
Sergeant Anderson feels her unit has achieved much under the programme. She feels pleased when she walks down King Street and one of her KC students reaches out and touches her and says, "Hey miss," and even introduce their parents. 'I am a KC girl!" She continued. It was clear that she did all of this as Ivor Nugent would say "For love of KC."
