Rialto Unified Approves $35K Campus Safety Contract After Jehue Fight, Prompting Praise and Pushback

On April 9, the Rialto Unified School District (RUSD) board contracted Cornerstone HR Consulting and Investigations to improve campus safety over a three month period for $35,000. The decision comes weeks after the March 10 in-class fight between two teenagers at Jehue Middle School, spurring community debate on the efficacy of campus security.   

The contract, paid by RUSD’s general fund, began on April 10 and runs through June 30.

During the April 9 meeting, Miguel Medina of Cornerstone HR presented to the board several key campus security updates. He outlined a series of safety reforms, including de-escalation training for teachers and substitutes, the use of hand-held metal detectors and the hiring of 13 new safety officers and one safety supervisor. The District also plans to revise safety protocols, create a centralized incident database and provide crisis prevention training for administrators through UCLA. 

According to RUSD spokeswoman Syeda Jafri, the board mulled over safety improvements before the violent breakout at Jehue. 

“The District has received and considered important feedback from families and community members, both before and after the incident, and that input has helped to shape our response moving forward,” Jafri said. “Mr. Medina will support efforts in crisis prevention and response, train staff in behavioral interventions and conflict de-escalation, and lead districtwide anti-hate and anti-bullying initiatives.” 

While some welcome the contract, others are less sure—and for different reasons. 

Education advocate Steven Figueroa was critical of the board’s decision, citing what he described as Medina’s indifference during a federal investigation of the alleged rape of an 11-year-old girl at a San Bernardino middle school. 

Formerly, Medina served as the Title IX Coordinator for the San Bernardino City Unified School District. Last November, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights found that administrators failed to comply with Title IX regulations.

“In a rush to please the public, they failed to provide a comprehensive background,” Figueroa said. “They could have chosen better.”

As for additional security staff, Figueroa explained that he supports hiring more security because “their very presence de-escalates violence.”

However, for Pastor Sam Casey of Congregations Organizing for Prophetic Engagement (COPE), additional security staff exacerbates the problem. 

He’s worried the district may have overcorrected—that their approach may do more harm than good. 

“There are no studies that show that increased presence of law enforcement and or security staff militarizing our school campuses make them any safer, nor does it detour students, you know, from the engagements that they have,” Casey said. “I think the challenge is, how do we build the capacity of local school staff, administrators, teachers—all support staff on campus— to have a restorative justice framework that brings responsible, restorative and redemptive ways to school campuses and communities.”