Another student fight breaks out at Dekaney High

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Four students were caught after a fight at Dekaney High School in Spring and parents are fed up with the violence.

Over the last few months, there have been several fights at Dekaney. Now some students are worried about their safety.

For the first time, we're getting a glimpse at the chaos that students say erupted there during the lunch hour. But the school district says the pictures don't tell the whole story.

If you look carefully at the video in the window above, you can see the commotion inside the cafeteria at Dekaney. It was caught on a cell phone video shot by a student who witnessed it all.

"The kids just started throwing milks and stuff. In the hallways, they started throwing trash cans, so I headed upstairs and started taping the fights on video," the student said.

On it, you could see the chaos. The student, who didn't want to be identified, says a teacher even asked him for help during the scuffle.

"She told me how this kid tried to hit her and whatever. So I was about to go find the boy but she was like, 'No I'm gonna get in trouble,'" the student said.

Spring ISD officials say the fight started between just four students, but it appeared larger because it occurred during the lunch hour in the middle of the cafeteria. They tell us no one was hurt and no weapons were found.

"We are working hard to work together and partner with parents and the community to improve the climate of Dekaney High School and to prove the teaching and learning that's taking place here," Dekaney High School principal Delic Lloyd said.

Parents, though, say it's just the latest symptom of a larger problem they see at Dekaney -- a lack of control by school leaders. They remember the melee last May when two students ended up in the hospital.

"This is crazy. This school needs to be closed down. It's really crazy. It needs to be closed down," parent Melinda Bradley said.

Parents fear for not only the safety of their children who attend here but also for the education they are receiving.

"I said hey, this is it. Enough is enough," parent Willie Mays said.

Mays withdrew his son recently and moved him to a private school because of all the fights.

"There are some good students here but the bad students are making it look bad for the good students," Mays said.

Spring ISD says it's made several changes at the school since the fight in May. They include staggering bell schedules for both older and younger students and increasing communications between teachers and parents. They've also added hall monitors to watch students in between classes.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Fight prompts changes at DeKaney High School

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- More than a week after a massive brawl at DeKaney High School, the Spring ISD school is announcing police changes.

This was no five-minute fight. It was a brawl that lasted more than half an hour. Parents we talked to on Friday night welcomed changes in how the school is run. It was student cell phone video of the brawl that unnerved some parents. "It scared me, it scared me," one parent said. "Really bad, really bad," Dekaney High School parent Randy Caraway said. The principal at the high school is now making changes after Thursday's brawl, which lasted 40 minutes, left blood on the floor and two students transported to the hospital. Students say they've already noticed a change. "It's pretty common but like, after it happened, it doesn't happen anymore," Dekaney High School student Rodniqua Gould said. An investigation into the bloody brawl by the administration and Spring ISD district police revealed they had too many students in the downstairs hallway at once, and when one student punched another, it sparked multiple fights. "I really believe it was just a one-time deal. Someone got out of hand, some knucklehead and with friends around, you know everything, it all happened," Caraway said. In a statement released to parents, principal Delie Loyde says, "I am adjusting schedules for when students transition to control the number of students in the hallway during the school day. In addition, I am increasing adult supervision throughout the hallway during transitions." Parents are welcoming the new policy and hope the brawls are behind them. "The more people we have, the more adults we have in the classrooms and in the halls, we'll make it better," Caraway said. In all, 19 students were suspended or sent to an alternative school. One of those students was arrested by police for refusing to obey an officer. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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