Over the past decades, the Philadelphia public school system has been a main target for theft. Specifically, at Franklin Learning Center High School, theft has been common amongst the student body. However, after reporting these events to the school police, students rarely receive any word back on whether or not their items can be found. Many residents, are wondering what can be done to prevent and protect their belongings from being stolen while attending school.

Families and faculty are fed up. When asked if they have had something taken from them while they were in school, 10 out of 18 FLC students replied yes.

A problem that has been this consistent needs to be put to an end.  Mrs. Krakauskas, Dean of Students, thinks school thieves “Should definitely be prosecuted to the fullest extent in the court of law because you’re not just stealing from the public school system you’re stealing from children.”

In addition, many students are left wondering about whether or not their school police officers can help them once a situation like this occurs. When asked if the school police were helpful, the majority of students ruled no. However,  School Police Officer Anthony Richardson, believes all he can do is “ Investigate, monitor the camera, and see if I can find out who took it, when, and where.”

But what can be done to prevent this from continuing in our high school? Sophomore, Samira Thornton, says “Theft is the fault of the security and [students] as a whole.” The most common recurring suggestion is to keep your belongings close to you at all times. “ I always lock my stuff up because you know people are hungry so I make sure hungry people don’t have any temptation” said Mrs. K.

There are also resources provided by public schools to protect your belongings. Officer Richardson says “Students [should] be more mindful of their surroundings and make sure [they] know to use the things that are given to them for a reason (like lockers) and not leaving their stuff on the cafeteria table.”

Even though students responsibility is a big deal, many believe officers could work a little harder to recover student belongings and the city could even try to help. Officer Frank Binns, District 127, says “The city itself should be [providing] more for public schools, and hopefully that will deter students from stealing.” He also added, “Most people steal because they want something they cannot have. If we can provide that then we can make it equal so kids probably will not steal.”

Author: Kody Taylor