Law Enforcement Leaders Tell Harkin: School Reform Bill Can Help Fight Crime
DES MOINES, IOWA (June 11, 2010)0–Law enforcement officials met with Senator Tom Harkin today to discuss opportunities to reduce crime through the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Senator Harkin will be a key legislator in the reauthorization of that bill as the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee-the panel responsible for writing the reform legislation in the United States Senate.
Polk County Attorney John Sarcone and Assistant Police Chief David Lillard met with Harkin urging his support for education reforms that will help reduce future crime. They recognized Harkin’s longtime work on education issues in Congress and asked him to consider reforms that will help cut crime by helping kids succeed academically and stay out of trouble. They specifically recommended providing kids with early education, keeping school-age kids on track to graduation, and reducing bullying, school violence and drug abuse, which would all have a positive effect on preventing later crime.
“I look at it this way: if you open a school door, you can close a prison cell. The best way to make sure kids are staying in school is to get them interested and invested in the learning process through high-quality early education,” County Attorney John Sarcone said. “Senator Harkin is a leader when it comes to helping Iowa kids receive an excellent education. We hope he will consider the perspective of law enforcement when it comes to improving our educational system through this bill.”
The law enforcement leaders asked that the reauthorization of the federal education bill provide incentives for states to increase access to high-quality pre-kindergarten, encouraging a shift to pre-k through 12 education, not just a K-through-12 approach. Providing at-risk children with high-quality pre-kindergarten can significantly reduce later involvement in crime and improve graduation rates.
A study of the Perry Preschool in Ypsilanti, Mich. found that at-risk kids left out of the high-quality program were 5 times more likely to be chronic offenders by age 27 than their peers left out of the program. The kids who attended were also 44 percent more likely to graduate from high school than those left out.
Research shows a clear connection between educational success and decreased involvement in crime. Research compiled by the anti-crime group Fight Crime: Invest in Kids also shows that a one-year increase of staying in school reduces murder and assault by almost 30 percent, motor vehicle theft by 20 percent, arson by 13 percent and burglary and larceny by about 6 percent. One study found that high school dropouts are eight times more likely to be incarcerated than graduates.
They also urged that the Elementary and Secondary Education Act ensure graduation rates are calculated consistently and accurately, and hold schools accountable for improving graduation rates. Additionally, they asked that the reform measure include evidence-based programs that reduce dropout rates and cut down on bullying, school violence and drug abuse.
The law enforcement leaders were representing Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, a national anti-crime organization of police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors and violence survivors with over 160 members in Iowa and more than 5,000 members nationwide.
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