Students Say They Feel Safe on High School Campuses : Poll: District survey also finds that teachers are well regarded. But many students say they have difficulty getting along with their peers.

A majority of Long Beach high school students feel safe when they are on campus, but many say they do not get along well with other students, according to a school district survey.

The positive views about campus safety surfaced in the district’s first poll of student attitudes. The June survey found that 59% of students said they felt safe at the district’s seven high schools.

“People aren’t afraid to go to school,” Nica Ortega-Operchuck, 17, said last week. “The only time people didn’t feel safe was during the Rodney King tension.” Ortega-Operchuck is a senior at Wilson High School.

In addition to safety, the 8,324 students who were polled also had favorable opinions of teachers and activities. Sixty-one percent believe teachers are sensitive to and promote tolerance of other cultures. Fully 78% believe students of various ethnic groups are included in school activities.

But the poll also revealed that students have low opinions of their peers.

Only 36% said they get along well with each other, and only 29% believe other students respect them, regardless of their appearance or ethnicity. Forty-two percent said they felt they were learning to resolve conflicts, regardless of racial or ethnic differences.

Results of the written poll were released to individual schools in August, said Linda Moore, an administrator in the district’s office of research and statistics.

Moore said a racial breakdown of high school students surveyed was not available, but pollsters tried to include a cross-section of races and ethnic groups.

Latinos are the largest ethnic group in the 75,000-student Long Beach school system, making up 34.5% of the student population, according to school officials. Whites account for 24.2%, African Americans make up nearly 19.7%, Asians make up 19.4% and Pacific Islanders make up 2% of students. Fewer than 1% are Native Americans.

Principals and other administrators are using the results to evaluate how well they are doing in easing racial tensions on campus, officials said. Students will be surveyed every year.

Officials point to the poll to counter negative perceptions of the school district after recent widely publicized reports of violence.

On Dec. 7, a 16-year-old Wilson High School student was shot in the leg after he got into a fight with two other teen-agers in front of the school.

Last month, police arrested 12 students after a fight broke out at Jordan High School. Supt. Carl Cohn announced last week that a police officer would be stationed at the school beginning in February, in part to keep the peace.

During the first six months of this year, school officials reported 2,210 fights at the district’s 82 elementary, middle and high school campuses. There were 178 assaults against students, 27 against teachers. Officials said 196 incidents of battery against students were reported. Fifty-two battery incidents against teachers were reported. There were 27 assaults with a deadly weapon and 54 sex offenses against students, school officials said.

Despite those statistics, some school officials say students’ positive perceptions about school safety are correct.

“I really don’t think we are a dangerous school district,” school board member Jenny Oropeza said. “The perception that our schools are full of gun-toting students is wrong. We’re the third-largest school district in California and one of the 40 largest in the country. We’re bound to have incidents that may seem to be large in number.”

Several other districts, including Compton, Pomona and Alhambra, have had racially charged disturbances this year.

Oropeza said she was dismayed by other aspects of the survey, particularly the response from students who felt they could not get along with others.

The district has supported new programs aimed at relieving racial tensions and promoting tolerance of other races, she said. Every year, freshmen and sophomores attend human relations camps to learn to overcome prejudices against other races.

A program started this fall attempts to reduce racial tensions by encouraging students to resolve conflicts among themselves, officials said. The SPIRIT (Student Problem Identification and Resolving It Together) program is a joint effort of the school district and Long Beach Police Department.

High school students from different racial groups meet regularly to prepare a list of concerns and suggestions to be considered by the school principal, a district spokesman said.

Oropeza said the district has a hot line on which students can anonymously report guns and other problems on campus.

“We’re a multicultural community, and we’re not coming to grips with it,” Oropeza said. “We need to make a larger commitment to youngsters to try and break the cycle of intolerance.”

Survey of Student Opinions

Percentages reflect responses by 8,324 students in the Long Beach Unified School District to statements in a poll taken in June, 1993.

Statement Agree Disagree I feel safe at this school. 59% 41% Students get along well with each other. 36% 64% Students are learning to resolve conflicts, re- gardless of race or ethnic background. 42% 58% Students demonstrate respect for all students, regardless of ability, appearance or ethnicity. 29% 71% Students of various ethnic groups are included in school activities. 78% 22%

Source: Long Beach Unified School District