From the alarming trend of student fights and riots going viral on social media to the arrests of school aged children involved in these incidents being widely publicized.

Government of Guam officials including the Guam Department of Education (GDOE), the Guam Education Board (GEB), Guam police, and senators gathered at the Attorney General’s office today.

The group discussed the pressing need for intervention and resolution.

Attorney General Doug Moylan said, “What we’re seeing is gang-type behaviors–and we’re talking about the riots and stuff; culture–groups of people that…whether it’s the micronesians, the filipinos, the CHamoru’s, the reds the blues, this is basic gang activity that’s going on, and the ag’s office and the police department are the ones that normally get called because violence starts to occur when there’s an outbreak.”

The roundtable came in the wake of the most recent riot involving Simon Sanchez High students currently in double session at John F. Kennedy high school in Upper Tumon.

AG Moylan shared some of his ideas in hopes to deter student violence with a room full of school principals and other community members. Among those suggestions include Child Protective Services referrals for suspected problem kids.

“CPS has certain powers under the Executive Branch to cause investigations. Like when a name comes up, and people come on that list, they have the authority to immediately do a home study to start investigating the parents. And I believe part of this has got to be our parents out there,” Moylan said.

The AG also brought corporal punishment into the conversation, wanting to get the island’s pulse on discipline.

He said, “On page 36, you have a discussion about what is corporal punishment, what states are allowing it, what states are not allowing it–there are all different grades of it where it legal, unused, and so forth, this is a question of whether Guam wishes to have some sort of corporal punishment.”

AG Moylan threw out other brainstormed disciplinary action ideas. He said, “It’s no use in my opinion to do corporal punishment when the kids are already 17 or 15. Parents need to do that when they are young. The problem we face as a community is that we get them all different shades, all different colors and so forth. I am one of the advocates for not corporal punishment but we need to start discussing it.”

Moylan suggested whatever the solution is, the plan should include testing it out at an actual campus.

He went on to say,

“This is a question of whether or not Guam wishes to have some form of corporal punishment. I am also an advocate of not expelling kids or suspending them. Take the minors at all ages and have a progressive form of discipline and work with the principals to decide what is going to be done. For example, cleaning the bathrooms. It’s something nobody wants to do…but do it when the other kids are around so you get the positive reinforcement through a negative type of act. Use these social networks against the kids. The same thing we had back then, which is peer pressure exists even more so now because you have the online bullying…we just need to find a way to use it and turn it against the bullies, against those alpha males who think it’s cool to be beating up kids.”

The AG also asked where does the island stand in terms of discipline?

Meantime, GEB members shared their frustration during the meeting. GEB Vice-Chair Maria Gutierrez said, “We all have a responsibility. We just can’t kick out the kids from school.”

Another GEB member, Dr. Ron McNinch commented, “We need more men in the community. We have a lot of divorces, a lot of divided families, and absent fathers. We need men to stand up and say this behavior is intolerable…also, many mothers are having to do a father's role, and I believe families are part of the solution.”

Peter Alecxis Ada, GEB member added, “Allow the principal to send a notice to the parents with the child and say you are going to make sure your parents get this. If the second time a notice comes and they did not show up, the AG’s office can send a notice to the courts to get the parents in. We’ve got to cut it down. These kids are taking advantage of us, and the parents…really don’t understand what’s going on. So I am begging you and asking you to allow the principals to send that notice to the kid.”

And while the Attorney General poses identifying and offering jobs to what he calls “alpha students and gang leaders,” others like legislative Vice-speaker Tina Muna Barnes suggested not reinventing the wheel but revisiting past programs that many in the room grew up knowing.

Barnes said, “Everyone is saying even to work with the SROs, there is a funding issue. Is it really a funding issue, or is it about trying to go out there and do the community outreach. I think those are very important.”

It's all things to consider as the conversation on school violence continues.

The roundtable discussion can be viewed here.