Bowne Added To Impact School List

Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced he will assign more police officers to John Bowne High School starting this week because of a high number of criminal incidents at the school.
John Bowne, along with five other schools around the city, will join the mayors Impact Program, which designates extra officers to schools with high levels of violent and overall crime. The five schools combined accounted for 8.5 percent of major crime, though they make up only 0.5 percent of the total number of public schools.
"We have more to do, but through the Impact initiative, we are providing schools with the support and tools needed to ensure a safe environment," said Chancellor Joel Klein in a statement.
Five schools out of the original 16 Impact schools reduced crime levels enough to move out of the program, which began January 1, 2004.
Critics pointed out that in three original Impact schools, crime increased, however. The citys Public Advocate, Betsy Gotbaum, said overcrowding would have to be addressed to reduce crime and violence.
"More cops in more schools doesnt sound like crime is down, it sounds like were turning our schools into armed camps," said Gotbaum. "Putting cops in schools is a band-aid approach to curing the real problem."
Queens Councilmembers John Liu and James Gennaro also pointed to overcrowding as a major contributor to high levels of crime in schools. John Bowne, which is located in Gennaros district and serves many of Lius constituents, operated at 119 percent of capacity last year.
"John Bowne High School is an excellent school," said Gennaro.  "However, like many city schools particularly those dealing with the problem of overcrowding John Bowne has experienced a recent rise in crime in and around the school."    
"We need to review the Education Departments allocation of resources as well as the overcrowded conditions at large high schools as possible factors contributing to the many problems found at Bowne and elsewhere," said Liu.
sarah@queenscourier.com