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I’m also of the mind that you attach a $300 fee for any kid caught on school grounds with a cellphone. Let the parents know about that fee and tell them that the kid can’t come back until you hustle up the fee.

It’s time to let the schools off the hook....let the parents deal with the problem.

Fire security and private cops for the schools. Bring all the parents in and let them know....first sign of disrespect shown....five days of suspension. Second time...fifteen days of suspension. Third, your kid is finished in this county school system. Doesn’t matter what age they are...let the parents deal with their punk kid.

I taught in an inner city public school for 5 years, and--while the above looks good on paper--there are a few problems:

1) 5 days of suspension: suppose the offense happens during the early part of the day; how would you enforce the suspension, if the student refuses to leave (especially with non-existent security/police)? And if one is willing (and crazy enough) to let the student go his/her way politely until the end of the day (ignoring the offense temporarily), how would you stop the student from strolling in on the next day? (Yes, many such students regard 5-day suspensions as free vacation... but the parents who regard school as free babysitting while they work are the first to fight about it... and some students are quite determined to meet their homies and drug contacts in school.)

2) security vs. non-security: if any teacher so much as lays a hand on a student, they're opening themselves up to two things: (a) assault by the student (and EVERY inner-city student has learned at least one civics lesson: "teacher touches me = I have permission to attack teacher without repercussion, since my parents will sue"), and (b) immediate lawsuits/disciplinary threats against the teacher. That's just reality, in this crazy country; teachers are NOT ALLOWED to touch students, period.

I’m also of the mind that you attach a $300 fee for any kid caught on school grounds with a cellphone. Let the parents know about that fee and tell them that the kid can’t come back until you hustle up the fee.

Impossible to enforce. Lawsuits will stop it in a heartbeat (can't "punish welfare families" like that, you know!), and you have the same problem of trying to stop the little angels at the door, after having fired the security/police.

It’s time to let the schools off the hook....let the parents deal with the problem.

The only problem with your idea is that it's a SANE idea, trying to be implemented in an INSANE country, school system, and legal system. :)