>> jimmy: sorry i failed you. huey lewis and the news. their 30th anniversary of "sports" is out now. you can see a bonus song at jimmykimmellive.com. i want to thank you, j.j. abrams. jason collins and jarron collins. apologies to matt damon. we ran out of time. thank you for watching!

good night. tonight on "nightline." dangerous school. guards, security cameras and vicious fights. tonight this month inside a high school on the brink of closure. we meet the principal fighting to save it in a race against time. and follow two students who battled violence and despair on a daily basis. will there school close? who will win the last fight? >> we've got the biggest chinese business takeover ever in the u.s. famous cats and a dining device that makes fast food even faster. all tonight.

this is a special edition of "nightline." fear and hope at strawberry mansion with cynthia mcfadden. >> good evening. thank you for joining us. it is a story that plays out in too many communities across america. public schools where learning takes a back seat to simply making it through the day. tonight we take you to philadelphia for an extraordinary tale of fear and hope in what is considered one of the nation's most dangerous schools. the city is given the strawberry mansion high school just six months to prove it should be kept open. and my colleague diane sawyer along with the producer were there to witness a struggle against the odds in our latest edition of "hidden america." >> morning begins at strawberry mansion high school with a

prayer. >> we must save the children in your name, amen. >> amen. >> security guards take their time looking for knives in backpacks. faces used to prevent scratches in a fight. it is a school of more than 430 kids. a lot of them want to learn. a lot of them on a hair trigger. >> this is a dangerous school. a lot of fights start over nothing. you have to be safe. >> the last five years, mansion, as the students call it, has been considered one of the most dangerous schools in america and our cameras were allowed inside. linda is the fourth principal mansion has seen in four years and she could be the last. >> each day gets scarier. >> before coming to mansion, she

was an assistant superintendent in the district. >> i could not find a principal who was suitable to handle this. so therefore, i said to myself, because i love these students dearly, and i knew the community, i will just volunteer to be the principal. >> she is on a mission to turn around the school and has just a few months to save it from being closed because of a citywide budget crisis. she is always on edge. >> can you hear me? >> especially at lunch time. the entire school in one room. >> this is the most serious part of the day for me. i know that if they outnumber me, i don't know if i have enough manpower to bring them back. >> sudden lay fight between two girls. one spit on the other the day before. she rushes to break it up. >> my legs! >> take a deep breath. >> this reinforces the need for

strict order. so the principal is doing something never done before. he said forcing a dress code. it is not about grooming but safety. no boots because boots can be used to stomp heads. and no hoodies. >> we cannot identify them when they walk by. >> she has made sure security cameras are fixtures all over the school. >> how many cameras? >> 94. >> 94. >> 94 and we need more. >> we have to outthink them. they're trying to outthink us. >> somebody thought it was cute to start a fire. safety is not a joke. >> the principal has to worry not just about the students' safety but her own. a student recently threatened her life. >> he said to me i have a bullet with your name on it. i know guns are really accessible in this neighborhood so i don't think it is unreasonable that he can get his

hands on a gun and shoot me. >> mansion sits in a neighborhood where 40% live in poverty. the highest number of homicides, rapes in the city. these the kids in the honors program in mansion. for many it is tough at home. >> i don't dream. why would i have hope, well, ain't nothing going to change about this school or this neighborhood. >> for every student who causes trouble, there are so many who just want to learn. like a small quiet ninth grader named malaysia who documented her days for us. >> i'm living off school now. >> it is 6:30 a.m. when her school day begins. >> today should be a good day. >> she said she just wants to make her dad proud. she lives around the corner from mansion and tries hard to stay on track will but it isn't easy. one day after school, she gets punched in the face by another girl. >> you're busted up. >> she goes to see nurse judy. >> it is bruised around the

outside. and it is black and blue here. we're just going to put ice on it. >> malaysia worries that even though she said she had nothing to do with it, the principal who has strict rules will suspend her for fighting. >> i don't want to get suspended because that will make my grade go down. >> there are situations where i know particular kids are not going to start anything and i know you're not going to start nothing. you have to let me know something that happens. >> later i check in with malaysia. >> it is better. it is sore still. >> are you scared? >> of fighting? >> sometimes of coming to school. >> yeah. because i'm little. but it's not that bad thanks to the principal. >> we also meet this boy in the ninth grade trying to avoid trouble. >> how do you protect yourself in school? >> i use my words. for example, somebody says i want to fight you. i say i don't want to get suspended. i don't try to be big.

i don't try to be anything. i just be myself. >> he also tries to show up at school every day. even though he shoulders a lot of responsibility at home. >> i'm the only man in the house. i got two little sisters, a mom. you got to keep everything in order. keep everything under control. >> who is cooking in your house? >> potatoes cook on the stove near his bed. his clothes are in those plastic bags. >> what are your favorite subjects? >> chemistry and -- algebra 1. >> yeah? mixing chemicals. i like learning about the atoms. the periodic table. >> his pride, the junior military uniform he carefully lays out on the chair. >> so you keep it here so it doesn't get wrinkled. >> i ask him if he ever sees the way other kids live when he's watching tv. >> sometimes you must see something on tv and think, i wish i had that. >> yes, sometimes, better rooms. better houses.

stuff like that. >> how tall are you? >> i'm 5'9". >> how tall are you? >> 5'. >> you'll be here. you'll so be here soon. >> i hope so. >> three months to go before the principal finds out if her school will live or die. in the principal's office, she reads through notes from the teachers about their problems in class. >> then he told me, [ bleep ] hit somebody across the face and -- >> many of this year's teachers are part of the principal's regular team including the new history teacher who says if the students are willing to show up, why am i asking him a question about fear? >> how i am a going to answer that question? you're asking me, am i afraid? they're children. and they're coming to school. nobody wakes up in the morning

and says to themselves, i want to be a failure. >> what is the hardest part? >> getting to the real child. >> it is now winter semester. parent teacher conferences. >> to me it is getting the grades. i want a scholarship. >> okay. you got a b in english one. a c in social studies. >> i'm just curious. how many parents have you had come in the last two days? >> this is the first parent that i saw so far. >> rae? >> out of his 70 students, malaysia's dad is the only parent who shows up. he knows she is distracted by the chaos at school but her grades are slipping and he pleads with her to think of her own future. >> the mistakes that i made in my life. i don't want the same thing for you. >> he works in construction and just wants her to have more in life. >> i got to make money with my hands. why don't you make it with your brain. do you understand? >> but malaysia's grades may be the least of her worries. >> i got into like an argument

with some girl. in my biology class because she decided to throw something at me. >> the girl fights go on forever. and they're violent. >> they're violent. >> that's why i keep telling them, guys, somebody is going to get hurt of. >> as the principal walks out of the hall, another lunch looms. suddenly a fight breaks out. she rushes in. and when we come back, parents and teachers fight to save struggling mansion. [ girl ] there are man-eating sharks in every ocean...

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there are only a few months left before the students of strawberry mansion high school learn whether their school will survive. many of them believe the troubled school is their only hope for a brighter future. once again, diane sawyer. >> what's all the howling and screaming about? >> it is just before lunch time at strawberry mansion high school and the principal has her hands full. a bruising fight because one girl happened to bump into another. the principal quickly restores order. >> it is ridiculous. the word for somebody bumping you is excuse me. >> there are so many students in this school who simply want something better. take a look at the mansion version of "glee."

they have no music teacher. a student just did what he could. ♪ >> the principal grew up in this neighbor with a mother who used to put her children on the free sunday bus so they could travel into other neighborhoods and see different dreams. >> my mother said none of us have ever been to college but there must be some truth to it. i believe that people who maybe go to college are not poor. >> she is trying to pass on the lessons from her mother to her students at mansion. even helping pay for kids to go on college trips. the reality is time is running out for mansion. in january, principal wayman, students and parents come together. >> my prayer tonight is that the parents turn out. >> they want to convince the school superintendent and his team to keep strawberry mansion

open. >> it is not going to get us anywhere. >> we have to create better educational options for our children. >> while the decision is pending, back in school, the principal is still cracking down. >> they come back for monday. >> a tenth grader named brianna is expelled for a series of incidents. that's brianna. for her, it confirms the need for more action. >> why don't you say that's their problem. i'm not going to ruin my future. >> sometimes i act before i think. >> i meet with some of the other kids at strawberry mansion. >> have you been in serious fights? >> yes, i have. >> how serious? >> locked up serious. >> lorraine spent two months last year in a youth detention congressmen for using a blade to slice a girl's face in a fight. now she says she is trying hard to get back on track. the principal said she encourages them to try to connect their behavior today to their future tomorrow. >> if you're making bad

decisions, whether it be getting into fights, using weapon. when this felony gets on your record, it could possibly stop you from getting a little job and then you'll be incarcerated. >> ten years from now, where do you want to be? >> i plan on going to the navy. >> i want to go stu sboo a school for nursing. >> by the way, that future crime scene investigator stepped in to protect me during that lunch room fight. >> we don't want nobody hitting diane. nobody touch her of. >> to everyone's surprise, the decision about the fate of strawberry mansion comes earlier than expected. wayman breaks the news over the loud speaker. >> strawberry mansion will remain open. we get a chance to change history. we get a chance to get rid of all the labels, all the negativity and start anew. >> much needed hope for a young boy like him. >> the one way to help your family out is to educate yourself, right?

>> yes. >> okay. >> and remember malaysia and her dad? well, she is continuing to bring up her grades. >> she came a long way. i'm pretty proud of her. she has a little more determination. she is more focused now. >> i love my dad. >> i need some officers on these floors. >> it is now may. through sheer force of will, the principal has cut the serious incidents in half from nearly 100 last year. and the district superintendent, dr. william height, has taken notice. >> what's the single most important thing that has been done to turn it around in. >> leadership has been the one primary factor. if turn-around can happen here at strawberry mansion, could it happen anywhere. >> and as the seniors get ready to graduate, we learned 55 out of 92 senior students have been accepted into college. double the number from past years. but for some, that is not enough. they can't afford the deposit fees guaranteeing their place at

schools they love. like senior christine who is not able to go to philadelphia university. >> if i had the $550 to go to philadelphia university, i would go. >> for a moment, the unbreakable principal gives in to tears. in the auditorium, a school police officer plays "praise him," a hymn of hope. the year almost over. another day ends at strawberry mansion. the bell about to ring. >> i want you to be careful going home today, young people. and you all have to remember that education is the only way. it is your only ticket. and remember, if nobody told you they loved you today, you remember i do. i look forward to seeing you in school on time on monday. have a great day. when the bell sounds.

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an iconic american company sold to the chinese? a cat gets her close-up, and a fast food company come up with something nobody needs. it is all in tonight's feed frenzy.

what do you think about when you picture chinese food? beef and broccoli? sesame chicken? honey baked ham? well, maybe not. but all that could change with yesterday's $4.7 buy by smithfield foods. the largest buyout of an american company in history. we may just be in store for a whole new brand of takeout. in other financial news from ham on a plate to hamming it up for the camera, we turn now to the viral feline sensation known for her frown. yes, grumpy cat. seen here on "good morning america." has scored a movie deal with the producers of mall cop. we're still left with one question. why so grumpy?