Should have been a teacher (Allentown: middle schools, homeless, to relocate)

[loose cannon]

I admit to not being the most academically educated person as a result of my own foolishness. However, I know I could walk into Dieruff or Allen and instruct a bunch of these Allentown thugs. They would listen to me. If I could do it for just 1 day. Very much like the Jack Black School of Rock character. I'd have a blast!

[Ohs]

You are delusional. Life isn’t like some Jack Black movie. I think I am funny so I want to be a doctor like Robin Williams in Patch Adams... Come on really?

[PA.Dutchman]

I volunteered this past year at a center city elementary school. I worked in two first grades and one second grade.

Truly I have a Great Respect and Appreciation for our Teachers.

Although my experience was in an elementary school it can't be easy in any school now days.

What teachers are required to accomplish and to get finished in one day and in a semester is unbelievable.

Allentown's' Elementary Schools are up to 5 Grade. They had to hire Security Officers to protect teachers from some of the 5 TH graders.

One student threw his desk at his teacher and was suspended.

All our middle schools have Police Resource Officers including the two High Schools. Many a afternoon officers were called to Wm Allen this past year at dismissal time.

[toobusytoday]

Most High Schools have the school resource officers now. Southern Lehigh has one. In our HS his job is more to just be a presence then anything else and to simply cover the schools you know what. He's spoken at a couple of our parents meetings about cyber bullying too. I've worked in schools quite a bit and my daughter is a teacher - I don't think Jack Black would have lasted more then a month. But it WAS a fun movie!

[PA.Dutchman]

Sounds like you have been involved as well with our community.

Believe me we have tried and have volunteered as well hoping and praying it would turn things around. I wish I could say it has, but I am not convinced.

My sons attended Raub years ago, one of the school's first assaults took place back then. The boy was beaten so bad he was in a comma for several days, a gang of new arrivals beat the boy. This group has English as a second language.

Look at this past semester when those two men and a student invaded Raub and assaulted the student and restrained the teacher.

The last day of school this year the Principal from Raub was standing at 15 and Walnut calling for police on his scan phone. There was a disturbances even the last day of school.

We have a Police Band scanner. I listen one night to the police respond to the report of a Raub student punching out car windows with his gloves on. As the boy walked up Walnut he smashed more than five windows before he was stopped.

Last semester the police had to report to Wm Allen three times a week for fights at West Park. Finally someone was stabbed there.

Honestly I am a citizen of Allentown since my birth, for 61 plus years and we NEVER NEVER had these kind of problems.

I understand that things change and this time for the worse.

However who would recommend this area to any family to relocate needs to have a mental health screening.

[newtowhitehall]

I teach at one of the above mentioned schools.
Our teachers are AWESOME
We do our best, many of us spending thousands on school supplies, and books, becasuse the district can't provide.
We have many uninvolved parents (not all)
And my fifty period class last year has 38 students, 15 of them special ed, and 12 either pregnet or parents already.
Oh, and a homeless kid.
So if you think you could do it, apply to be a teacher aid. They only need a high school diplomia. I bet you end up with a better appreciation for what we do.
Oh, yeah , if we drove 30-45 min south, we would be making an ave. of 12,000.00 more per year.
We don't though, because we love our kids.