Second semester is not just a sign that the school year is almost over. It’s also a time when more fights tend to break out at ROJH.

This means more students in DAEP.

“Students get called down to the office to get their side of the story, there is an investigation, and then if there is anything to the investigation, the punishment towards DAEP (Discipline Alternative Education Program) begins,” Assistant Principal Todd Bramwell said. “If there is nothing to it, then there’s at least a phone call to parents.”

Bramwell said the school wants to send a message that fighting is not allowed.

“Most students do not want to go to DAEP,” Bramwell said  “We hope that people learn from their mistakes.”

Some students think that being sent to DAEP for fighting is fair. The first time a student is in a fight, they get five days in DAEP.

“I think the punishments are fair because they’re fighting, and they shouldn’t do that at school,” 7th grader Jennifer Mar said. “It’s just wrong. Everyone is supposed to be friends.”

Seventh grader Jose Flores agrees.

“The punishments are fair because they both committed the fight, and the school doesn’t want that to happen again because it’s against the rules and those people just broke the rules,” Flores said.

Students such as  Julian Vergara, Cylinda Martinez, Alberto Rodriguez and Nathan Espino have served time in DAEP for fighting.

“DAEP is fun and horrible at the same time,” Vergara, a 7th grader, said. “They put you into a cubicle where you do work, and before you get in, you get flagged down with a metal detector.”

Vergara said that the DAEP punishment would not stop him from getting in a fight if it is a matter of self defense. For others, DAEP is a bigger deterrent.

“The DAEP punishment won’t stop me from getting in a fight, but it will make me think twice before I engage in the fight,” Rodriguez, a 7th grader, said.

Martinez said the DAEP punishment taught her how to be a better student, although she thinks there should be alternatives to DAEP.

“I don’t get why they don’t just put us in the ISS room if it’s kinda the same thing,” she said.

Espino said he thinks DAEP is a fair consequence for fighting.

“If you do bad things, you have to accept the punishment, and DAEP suits the actions well,” he said.