Conflict-resolution teams and tight security helped ease jitters at Locke High School on Monday, the first school day following the roving, half-hour-long melee last week that involved 600 students and required more than 100 police officers to defuse.
The riot was the most dangerous occurrence to date during a difficult transition year for the Watts school. The campus at 111th and San Pedro streets has long been one of the most troubled in the Los Angeles Unified School District, with frequent fights and low test scores.
As of July 1, Locke will become a charter school operated by Green Dot Public Schools, a nonprofit that is independently run and publicly funded.
The Friday chaos began as students returned from lunch to their fifth-period classes. School officials called police for help; students and faculty said it took about half an hour for school district and Los Angeles police officers, many in riot gear, to restore order.
First thing Monday morning, officials sent a clear message that no further disturbance would be tolerated: A dozen school police officers patrolled the campus while Los Angeles police manned perimeter streets, standing next to bicycles and parked patrol cars. On Friday, student fights had overwhelmed two school officers and 14 security aides.
There also were efforts Monday to counsel students and determine what and who started the riot, which resulted in four arrests and numerous minor injuries.
Local clergy and parent volunteers walked the halls, while Supt. David L. Brewer supervised the response. They were joined by Steve Barr, the founder of Green Dot, who operates a number of other small high schools in the area.
Meanwhile, 20 conflict-resolution specialists broke into teams of two, working with more than 300 students before noon.
About half of the students said the brawling was prompted by their peers -- bored with school and ready to ignite, said intervention specialist Holly Priebe-Diaz.
Other students, she said, blamed ongoing racial tensions and gang problems. Historically black Watts has changed rapidly to a Latino-majority community, with gangs of both ethnicities claiming overlapping turf in the economically depressed streets. Locke's student body is about 65% Latino and 35% African American.
"This is a microcosm of something bigger happening in the community," Priebe-Diaz said.
