Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Rewards OKd for Student Crime Tips : Hot lines: Antelope Valley district will give $25 to informants reporting drugs or weapons at high schools.

The trustees of the Antelope Valley Union High School District on Wednesday night approved a program that offers $25 rewards to high school students who tip off authorities to the identities of fellow students who bring weapons and illegal drugs to school.

The trustees endorsed the program 4 to 0, saying it will lead to a safer learning environment at the district’s five four-year campuses and its continuation school. The trustees also promised to protect the identities of student informants.

“I think it’s well worth it and pays for itself,” said board President Billy Pricer. “It gives the good students the ability to make some good moves comfortably and anonymously.”

No objections were raised by other board members or by the public attending the meeting.

Many school districts, including Los Angeles Unified, have set up hot lines to collect tips on illegal activity on campus, but district-funded rewards for such information are much less common.

The Antelope Valley district, which has about 13,870 students, will pay the rewards from its general fund, which provides for teacher salaries and other daily operating expenses. Because this fund totals about $45 million for the current school year, district officials say offering the rewards will not require any program cuts.

“At $25 apiece, if we had 100 of them over the year, it would probably not impact any particular budget,” said Con Oamek, assistant superintendent for business services.

Even before setting up the reward, the district began publicizing a hot line number for tips on illegal activity on campus. Informants provide the tips to district administrators, who relay information to school principals or campus security officers.

Principals and administrators will be allowed to pay the rewards in cash, then obtain reimbursement from the school district. The principal or administrator will keep confidential records of the informants, and the students’ names will not appear in the district’s public checking account records, Oamek said.

School officials hope the program will help reduce drug usage and the carrying of weapons on campuses. If a weapon is found, the student who brought it to school must attend a hearing before an administrative panel that makes expulsion recommendations to the school board.

During the last school year, 67 students were referred to this panel for possessing weapons, said Ray Monti, assistant superintendent for educational services. Three years ago, 83 students were referred for weapons violations.

Students caught selling or handing out drugs on campus are also referred to the review panel. A principal can take other disciplinary action if a student merely possesses a small amount of drugs.

Monti said the Antelope Valley district’s “zero tolerance” program regarding drugs and weapons is patterned after a similar policy in the San Diego Unified School District.

But Alex Rascon, director of police for San Diego Unified, said his district does not pay rewards for tips received on its 24-hour hot line. Even so, he said many students provide valuable information without expecting a financial payoff.

“Almost 95% of the weapons we confiscate are reported by other kids,” Rascon said.

About two years ago, high schools in the Conejo Valley Unified School District in Ventura County began offering rewards, starting at $100, for campus crime tips. The money came from community donations, not district funds.

“It wasn’t particularly successful,” said Richard Simpson, Conejo Valley’s assistant superintendent for instruction services. “It required us to do our own fund raising to keep cash available. It also required a student to tell someone on campus, so the element of anonymity was missing.”

Since last March, the district has instead encouraged students to call a hot line run by a nonprofit anti-crime organization that provides rewards of up to $1,000.

Simpson said Conejo Valley Unified also urges students to provide crime tips without seeking a reward. “It’s our point of view that one of the things that needs to be taught in our schools is responsibility and citizenship,” he said.