More than 200 police officers permanently assigned to government senior and junior high schools in New Providence, Grand Bahama and Abaco returned to their posts yesterday morning as thousands of students returned to schools throughout the country.

Officers were stationed outside C. I. Gibson Senior High School and T. A. Thompson Junior High School as Minister of Education, Science and Technology Jerome Fitzgerald toured those schools and several others yesterday morning.

Fitzgerald said there was a significant reduction of violent incidents in public schools during the 2012 academic year compared to the year before, although he was unable to provide statistics.

"We had one or two incidents last year, but on the whole there has been a drastic reduction, and the schools are a lot safer," Fitzgerald said.

He had expressed concern about the number of violent incidents perpetrated in public schools on New Providence, in particular over the last few years.

The school-based policing program was discontinued by the Ingraham administration and relaunched by the Christie administration to reduce those incidents and strengthen the partnership between school administrators and police.

Bahamas Educators Managerial Union President Charles Wildgoose, who has been critical of the program, said recently there were no major setbacks as a result of the initiative and it appears to have done well.

Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) President Belinda Wilson said the program has met its mandate and it will continue to have a positive impact this year.

"I believe the officers have had a positive effect," she said in a recent interview. "What I like about what the officers are doing, they are collaborating and communication with the administration and guidance counselors and the intelligence on the ground is preventing incidents."

Herbert Oembler, principal at C. I. Gibson High School, said the officers attached to the school were on-hand to assist and often conducted walk-abouts around the school property and beyond to ensure student safety.

"Anything that we needed help with they were there to assist," said Oembler, who welcomed around 800 students during orientation yesterday.

Fitzgerald also provided an update on the state of schools and repairs that took place over the summer break. He said apart from a delay in paving a portion of Naomi Blatch Preschool there were no complaints about any other campus.

"I've heard no complaints from any of the schools I have been talking with," Fitzgerald said.

"Our plan manages district superintendents this morning and everything seems to be going well so far. "We would have wished that we would have had more money to do all of the repairs.

"We spent $5.2 million throughout the country addressing the major issues, and I think for the most part all of the teachers and principals are satisfied."

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