Teachers protest “dangerous” conditions at a St. Louis school

ST. LOUIS – Teachers at Vashon High School say staffing shortages have led to “dangerous situations within the building,” including the use of pepper spray against crowds of students.

“It is unacceptable that our students who come to school to learn find themselves in a situation where physical pain is inflicted on them simply because we do not have clear policies, consequences for behavior or effective leadership development,” it said The petition from teachers and staff was sent to St. Louis Public Schools administrators last week.

“Our workplace is not sustainable and we were made promises by leadership that were broken or completely ignored,” teachers and staff said.

Millicent Borishade, interim head of the SLPS, did not respond to questions on Monday. Borishade and principals from other schools have taken turns under Vashon's supervision this year, teachers said.

According to Lauren Bowers, head of the math department, 20 classroom teachers give up their planning lessons every day to substitute in other classes.

“Teachers are fortunate to have one planning period per week and are exhausted by it,” Bowers said in public comments at the St. Louis Board of Education’s Oct. 8 meeting. “It is unfair that at the end of the first quarter we still have four vacancies that need to be secured and that leads to chaos.”

Of the 37 teachers at Vashon, only 15 are certified. There are two guidance counselors for more than 600 students, Bowers told the board.

“Our students need social-emotional support and restorative discipline because they are dealing with so much trauma. Our teachers need hazard pay and any kind of incentive to teach at Vashon because we are losing incredible teachers due to the stressful environment,” she said.

Vashon opened on Laclede Avenue in 1927 as the second high school for African-American students in the city after Sumner. The original Vashon building eventually became Harris Teachers College, a predecessor of Harris-Stowe State University.

Vashon nearly closed after enrollment fell in the 1960s and again in the 1980s, when the desegregation program sent thousands of city students by bus to schools in St. Louis County.

The separation agreement provided tax money for new school buildings, and Vashon's current building at 3035 Cass Ave. was opened in 2002. While many SLPS buildings are more than 100 years old, the $40 million Vashon campus, with modern amenities and capacity for 1,300 students, is the heart of the Jeff Vander Lou neighborhood.

The school has always been an athletic powerhouse, with boys basketball winning its fifth straight state title and 15th overall last spring. But academics have struggled for generations, despite strong support from alumni, community and business. Ten years ago, students protested what they said was unequal treatment at Vashon compared to magnet high schools in the district.

Vashon's student enrollment has increased to more than 600 this fall, up from 480 five years ago. Almost all students are black and qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, an indicator of poverty. The average student reaches Vashon at a fourth-grade reading level and never catches up.

Last year, four out of five students were chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 10% of class time. The 2023 graduation rate was 59% and the average ACT score was 12.5 on a scale of 36, according to the state.

Bowers said there were 144 student suspensions in the first two months of this school year, compared to 62 in all of 2022-2023.

Teachers said school security officers organized a walkout earlier this month to support Vashon alumnus and former basketball coach Col. DeAndre Davis, SLPS security director, who resigned on Oct. 7.

The following week, Vashon's security team used pepper spray “to disperse crowds of students” in the hallways and cafeteria, according to the staff petition.

Vashon teachers and alumni said morale was also damaged by rumors that the high school would close before the opening of the nearby National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency campus in 2025.

“The solution is not to close Vashon because that just pushes the same problems elsewhere, but the solution is to invest in our needs,” said Bowers, who is in her 11th year teaching at Vashon.

City, school district and NGA officials all denied the rumors and said there is no plan to close or rezone Vashon.

The SLPS board approved a contract in August that will provide Vashon students with dual enrollment opportunities at St. Louis Community College's Harrison Center, across from the high school on Cass Avenue.

Still, the rumors concern former Vashon principal and basketball coach Floyd Irons, who said he would be devastated but not surprised if Vashon eventually closed.

“We have been fighting the closure of Vashon since I was a student there,” Irons said. “My heart bleeds blue and white. Vashon is largely community.”

The current problems at Vashon are not new. In April, seven-year principal Brenda Smith and two assistant principals were transferred to other positions in the district. Borishade, then SLPS principal, appointed Christopher Crumble to lead Vashon, but he has now returned to Yeatman-Liddell Middle School as principal.

“It is essential that teachers and students feel safe and secure in their learning environment. The new team is tasked with creating and maintaining such an environment,” Borishade wrote to the Vashon community at the time. “The goal of this leadership change is to enhance safety measures, improve communication and ensure a high-quality learning environment for all.”