Very good police work! More drugs off the street and out of harms way! Thank you Reading Police!

Let's not the girl who was punched at the high school.....This was only one piece of what has been described as a total free for all by this years senior class. Visiting guest from Pakistan to view the school were greeted with doorways and knobs covered in maple syrup, hallways and stairwells filled with water, fireworks/crackers literally going off in the hall....I can almost accept the toilet paper that literally covered the entire rear school property, the trash that was strewn about, but the rest is a disgrace. School "leadership" had to line the halls of Main St to keep order.

Can someone please comment with an explanation about what the heck kind of melee went on at Reading High School that others seem to be referring to? Apparently one item in the above-mentioned police blotter is related to this (a girl being hit by another), but it sounds like there is a LOT more to this story. However, Neither the Reading/N.Reading patch site nor the Reading Advocate have reported on this. Not sure about the Chronicle - don't receive it. But, if there was an incident at RMHS where part of the school was trashed & fireworks lit, jeez, I don't know, but seems like something folks in town would want to know about just as much as the opening of a new bakery or bouncy place....

Ashley Troutman - please get some info and publish a story on the facts. This is what people want to hear about.....

dont expect "reporting" from the Patch. it's jsut a forum for angry fringe elements to vent

There are no drugs in Reading and we have the addicts to prove it!

The behavior (drugs & alcohol too) referenced above, will decrease when you have more severe "consequences." I.e. permanent expulsion and inclusion of offenses in the students permanent record, for colleges and employers to see. If someone decides to punch a girl in the face, set off fireworks or fires in the school or trash the school, let their parents find another school for them, if they can - period. We are paying the salaries of the people who are supposed to prevent this, are we not? Does your employer allow this at your place of work? Does the town allow this at town hall, at the fire station, at the police department, at the library? Why do they allow it at the high school with one week suspension? Our liberal society would rather put your law-abiding son or daughter in harms way rather than punish this kind of behavior.

What?! A fight in a high school?! Truly shocking. I agree with Kat S. "This was only one piece of what has been described as a total free for all by this years senior class."

I agree with the others above who mentioned that real consequences should be given. I don't care if they are a week away from graduation. Did they not know that fireworks are illegal or that punching other people is against the law? Did they sign the School Committe's form that said they read and will abide by the school's rules?

Or do they see other people at school or in town getting away with committing crimes with no consequences? I'm pretty sure there are consequences for not handing out consequences!

I am still in disbelief that someone would set off fire crackers in the high school!!

Accidents happen and can be overlooked but fireworks and fighting are not accidents. They are intentional with preparation and forethought.

The HS was not a free for all. Relax. Fights happen. It was handled. There was a single fire cracker. There was very little syrup on one entrance and some water in one staircase. Everyone smile and relax.

Oh and by the way, please remember that this is the week - actually, it has already started - that the high school seniors are allowed to speed through town and are not required to stop at stop signs. Just smile and relax when you see it and hopefully, no one you know - or they for that matter - will be involved in a serious accident.

As a student of Reading Memorial high school I would like to discuss my disgust with the people posting on these forms, and I will do my best to do it in a respectful an elegant way.
As a first matter I will discuss what actually went on the day of the firecracker and the fight. Before lunch in the last few days of school a student decided to light off a small firework on Main Street. It was nothing that exploded or created an extremely large risk for fire or injury, it simply shot up and made a little noise. It was not this massive explosion that rattled all of Middlesex County and sent the entire school into anarchy where students were flipping cars and hitting teachers.
Can anyone please tell me how the administration could have prevented that? Please tell me if you can think of any way. They could search students coming in, but a firecracker that small would be easily concealable. There is nothing the administration could have done, get over it. It was a senior prank that happened to fall on a day where the Pakistani government was in the school, which as a student I was completely unaware was happening until after the day was over.
As for the maple syrup and the water, it was a barely noticeable amount of syrup that got cleaned up immediately, and the water was in one stairway and was also dealt with very quickly. No one got hurt, no students were adversely offended, and the day went on. CONTINUED…

Senior pranks like this are common. I’m dumbstruck none of you people’s senior classes did anything, its just happened to be relatively calm the last few years. Lexington high school put maple syrup on there doors (Lexington.patch.com), Hopkinton High put pornographic magazines in their library (Hopkinton.patch.com), and in years past its been even worse for the latter. Officer Phil Powers was quoted on the Hopkinton patch website describing past senior pranks. “One year the seniors covered the stairs in liquor soap, another year they poured BBs down the stairs,” Powers said. “One year they even tied fishing line across the stairs to trip people.” “One year the seniors covered the stairs in liquor soap, another year they poured BBs down the stairs,” Powers said. “One year they even tied fishing line across the stairs to trip people.” Now if you would like to discuss the Reading senior class with such disregard, think about if they actually did something like this and actually risked people’s health and well being. CONTINUED…

On the matter of the fight, this was also an isolated incident that is being blown ridiculously out of proportion. I watched the entire thing start to finish, and it was nothing more than a small quarrel with one or two punches thrown before it was broken up. The senior girls and the underclassmen had preexisting problems between each other and it was certainly not “two seniors beating up” on an underclassmen. If you want some real fights to complain about id suggest heading to Stoneham, Woburn, and many other high schools across the state. CONTINUED…

Now, to address the comments made by user “Rich”. It has been extremely hard for me not to post an expletive laced response to this piece of total ignorance. His words:
“Who would want to send their kids there with this kind of animal
activity. Fireworks lit in hallways, graffiti on walls, trash, etc. - many seniors were embarased by the actions of few. two senior girls beating up on a sophomore. someone needs to be punished and set an example that this will not be tolerated.”
Here are some pretty convincing reasons why you would want to send your kid to Reading High. First and foremost in 2011 97.2% of all seniors graduated from Reading High (Profiles.doe.mass.edu), a rate significantly higher than the rest of the State and most likely eclipsed this year. Sure it’s not Weston, but for the level of average income in reading and the budget put towards schools id say that’s very excellent. Secondly, every year reading puts a select few students into ivy league schools, a dozen are so or more are awarded national merit scholarship awards, 90% of students are awarded proficient in math and English (USNews.com) based on a plethora of tests taken throughout the year, and many opportunities to go abroad and gather life experience are offered. So, “Rich”, if you think that a few petty senior pranks are not worth sending your students to a school like this set in a non-super affluent town, send them elsewhere, your loss. CONTINUED...

...Reading is also a powerhouse in division 2 sports, has comparatively lower suspensions and substance abuse issues than many other schools in the area, and is a very comfortable town to live in.
Lastly, as a general comment to all of you people on Readingpatch.com, complaining and doom-saying about the AD or the state of Reading High School, please go talk to students that aren’t your kid about what Reading High is like before you run to these forums and cry wolf about something your kid heard from a friend of a friend. Spend a day in the high school or attend an awards night or sports game. In particular directed towards “Rich”, please know your facts before you act like Reading is located in the ghetto.

-Peregrinecam