the commons area, he said. Students were asked for

the commons area, he said. Students were asked for the names of those who were walking across the table tops, but “you know the teen-age rule: don’t rat on your friends,” Mr. Toth added.

When the table walking continued, the principal said, “we could have closed the area and told the students they had to wait outside, but I wanted to deal with the people who were causing the problem. I have a great deal of difficulty in penalizing the majority for the actions of a few.”

So the camera was set up in Brion Patterson’s physics lab, and the five students caught on film walking on the table tops were “dealt with in a proportional manner” by being barred for five days from participating in after-school activities, Mr. Toth said.

Several of the students were in the final days of sports tryouts and so the start of the penalty period was delayed for those individuals until after the team selection process was completed, he noted. “We didn’t want to really penalize anybody. We just wanted to send a firm message to take care of things here,” Mr. Toth said.

According to the principal, there was no announcement to students of the videotaping possibility. “I did announce several times that we were having a problem with school property and that they were going to lose the privileges of the commons area if it didn’t stop.”

While saying that videotaping will not become a “general practice” at RCHS, Mr. Toth nonetheless held out the possibility that the camera will be used to monitor students spotted smoking outside in order to determine just exactly what it is they are smoking. “I’m very much in favor of using video cameras where we suspect drug or alcohol use. I don’t want drugs or alcohol in our school. I don’t want theft in our school. I don’t want vandalism in our school,” Mr. Toth affirmed, adding that he believes the public supports his position.

“I will use w hatever legal means I need to use in order to perform my job in an efficient manner [and to ensurej a clean, safe, favorable environment in our school.”

He did say, however, that the video camera will not be employed in the bathrooms to catch violators of the “no-smoking” rule. “It would be ridiculous to put a camera anywhere where students may be exposing themselves. In the girls’ shower room? No way in the world. In the boys’ shower room? No way in the world.”

He acknowledged that RCHS students are upset at the video camera surveillance and that they doubt the administration’s assurance that video monitoring is not a common practice. “What’s going on is a lot of paranoia,” he said, describing the students’ reaction of scanning classroom ceilings for hidden cameras.

“My goal is not to nab some student for doing something Wrong. My goal is to get it stopped! My goal is to get the students to behave within certain conduct limits,” the RCHS principal concluded. “I don’t enjoy catching students doing something wrong. I enjoy catching students doing something right. I enjoy positive exchanges.”

But if misuse of school property continues, so will the video surveillance, Mr. Toth indicated. “The School Board, the Board of Supervisors and the taxpayers expect us to take care of this school,” he concluded.