Students at Noble Street College Prep in Chicago, Illinois, have to pay the price—literally--for bad behavior, untied shoelaces, an unbuttoned button or just not following the rules. They must pay a fine of five dollars for even the most minor of infractions.

But has this school gone too far? Is administration taking things over the top?

Detention is something that has always been dreaded, and it is what most students shy away from. Too many detentions could ultimately result in loss of privileges, loss of time, suspension or even expulsion.

Noble Street High School, however, takes a different approach. Superintendent Michael Milkie thinks the policy teaches the poorest families, including minorities, to follow rules and produce a learning environment, according to his interview in an Associated Press story run by the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

“By sweating the small stuff… we don’t have issues with the big stuff,” Supt. Milkie told the reporter.

Last year the school collected $190,000 from students due to discipline “fees.”

It has many parents outraged and upset by the cost of misbehaving. Many argue that is has gone over the line from discipline to harassment. They also say it is highly inappropriate and the school is manufacturing their own problems, such as badgering children over unnecessary things.

The school, however, thinks that they are taking a step in the right direction. Many schools in their same area have fights that break out almost every day, while Noble Street has a fight maybe once a year.

But is this thanks to the new policy in place?

Mr. Greg Masarik, Associate Principal at Notre Dame Academy and head of the discipline committee questioned the form of punishment. “It sounds very interesting, but you would have to take a look and see if it is really effective.  We are always looking for ways to stop misconduct.”

Notre Dame Academy had a method of making students pay a fee of fifty dollars a few years back for the possession of tobacco, but it has since changed as the years progressed.

Other than that, money has never been a form of punishment. Perhaps this new method is so surprising because it has never been done before, or at least this is the first time the nation is hearing of it.

“We are always trying to find ways to decrease bad behavior, and I would be interested to learn more about the effectiveness of this form of punishment,” Masarik said.