Philosophy

    The Student Crime Stoppers program was designed to encourage and assist students in "taking charge" and contributing in a positive manner towards making their schools a crime-free environment.

    This program was not designed to identify youthful offenders and throw then into the Judicial System, but rather to provide an anonymous method to identify those demonstrating unsuitable behavior and to then apply corrective measures at an early stage.

    The basic philosophy is that the offending student "took something out of society and must now put something back". Offenders would pay for damages or thefts occurred through their behavior and then perform a school-based community service to balance the scales, so to speak.

    This program has proven to be a valuable tool in promoting student "ownership" within their schools. Once this feeling has been established within the communal setting of the school, it's our hope that it will only be a small step to display it within the community at large.

     Student Crime Stoppers is a very successful program that has proven to be cost-effective and efficient in schools across North America. Westisle Composite High School was the first Islan school to sign up in 1995.

    The program has the ability to provide our schools with benefits which ultimately affect all our communities. Benefits include the following:

• Students taking charge of their own environment
• Closer relationship among students, schools, and police services.
• Deterrence of potential offenders, producing a lower crime rate.
• Student participation.
• Student knowledge of police operations.
• Security in the knowledge that something is being done about crime.
• Cost effectiveness and efficiency.
• Greater success in solving and preventing school crime.

  A Student Crime Stoppers tip can be resolved in two ways:

1. by a police investigation
2. by a school administration investigation

    The severity of the crime will dictate the method of investigation in agreement with police and school administrator. The Student Program Board of Directors oversee the program, advertise unsolved crimes, and provide promotion.