Why Doesn't Seattle Schools Seem to Care about School Safety?

I previously mentioned how, at a recent Board meeting, Superintendent Brent Jones went on about all the committees forming around school safety but not a word about what is actually happening at schools. 

The district has a LOT of capital dollars at their disposal - don't allow ANYONE to tell you differently. That they are taking TWO YEARS to change all the locks at all the schools is disgraceful. Those buildings need security now and the district should be spending to make that happen by the fall. Not the fall of 2024.

The West Seattle Blog reported this story yesterday:

Message from Principal Brian Vance:

Good morning West Seattle High community –

Yesterday we received several notifications regarding social media posts that included threats to our school.

We have reported these threats to Seattle Police and to the school district’s Safety & Security Department.

The most recent update is that the person who made the threats is receiving care now and we don’t believe the threats are credible.

We are ready to welcome students to school today. Thank you to all of you who reached out and to the students who brought this to the attention of a parent and/or school official.

What also seemed to happen at WSHS is that a senior showed up to a freshman class and asked the teacher if they needed help. That student was told to leave and the door was then locked.

What is unclear is if the student was at home, why other kids saw the student at school. 

An update states:

Dear West Seattle High School community,

Thank you for your patience today. I appreciate the messages and questions families have sent me expressing their concern over the social media posts by a student this weekend. The posts were reported to the Seattle Police Department and district safety and security team. Both Seattle Police Department and district Safety and Security team investigated this incident and have determined it was not a credible threat. West Seattle High School students and staff were not in harm’s way.

 Our school day was not affected, and we followed our standard schedule.

The student involved is in need of additional care. They are receiving that support. I appreciate your patience and respect for that individual’s privacy. 

I take the safety of West Seattle students and staff very seriously. I understand any talk of violence is cause for concern. There were rumors about a continued threat during the school day today. These rumors have been investigated and are not substantiated.If students are feeling the weight of stress, our school has many resources that can provide support. Our Teen Health Center, school counselors or the district’s Health Services team are all available. Additionally, Crisis Connectionsprovides a 24-hour crisis line at 866-427-4747. Students can also access Teen Link at 866-833-6546. I am proud of how staff and students responded to this incident. 

Thank you to the individuals who alerted us to the posts. If you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,Principal Vance

Today the story at the West Seattle Blog is this:

For the second consecutive day, police and Seattle Public Schools authorities are investigating a social-media post construed as a “potential threat.”  

Messaging from two schools' principals:

Dear Chief Sealth and Denny Families and Staff,

We want to provide some information about a social media post shared among our community that is causing concern. Overnight, we received notifications regarding a potential threat.

We are working with Seattle Police Department (SPD) and Seattle Public Schools Safety and Security. The police department and district’s Safety and Security Department are investigating. At this time, we have not determined any credibility to the post.

School will continue as scheduled today, Tuesday, May 9. As a precaution, SPD will have officers on the Denny and Chief Sealth campuses today. We will also have additional district security staff at our school.

The safety and well-being of our students and staff is my top priority. We are committed to doing everything to keep our students and staff safe. Thank you to the students and families who reported this concern to administrators. Please talk with your students about the importance of reporting any threats they hear or see immediately.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,

Principal Morales & Principal Lam
Chief Sealth International High School & Denny International Middle School

Quite curious and troubling.

Then there was this story in the Seattle Times, about how Ingraham parents have heard very little from the district since the murder that happened there earlier this year. 

Background

On Nov. 8, 17-year-old Ebenezer Haile was shot by another student in a school hallway. The next day, Jones announced a new safety initiative: Seattle Public Schools would assemble a community action team of school, police, city and community leaders to assess how safety can be improved at schools and surrounding neighborhoods. 

To address mental health, a child wellness team made up of psychologists, counselors, pediatricians and social workers would be launched. Jones also said the district would conduct an audit of safety plans at Ingraham and safety reviews of the district’s 106 schools.

The district says it has accomplished all of those tasks.

But

Safety reviews for each school are also in progress. Jones has said it would take time, and would start with high schools. The district has not said how many schools have been reviewed so far or who is conducting the reviews. 

So which is it - these tasks are done or not? 

The safety and emergency signs include the phone number for a safety hotline and instructions on what to do during a shelter-in-place, lockdown and evacuation event. Officials said every school will have signs by the end of the school year.

Great, those signs will be a big help.

Now

Six months after Seattle Superintendent Brent Jones promised to review and update safety measures after a shooting at Ingraham High School left one student dead, students and parents say they’re frustrated by the district’s lack of communication and failure to provide timely updates. 

But Friends of Ingraham, a nonprofit group led by Ingraham High parents, has sent three letters to the district asking for more information.

The group asked for the outcome of the audit, what safety policies and procedures have been changed as a result, and whether policies and procedures leading up to the shooting and following the shooting were followed.

The parent group had a discussion with Jones set up in March, but it was delayed, said Kathleen Zagers, co-president of Friends of Ingraham. A meeting is set for this week.

Jones’ staff scheduled an interview with The Seattle Times for this story, then later canceled, but they have said they will reschedule. During a recent School Board meeting, Jones acknowledged the delays in updates to the community and said the district is working on it. 

Parents say their frustrations and concerns were heightened after a video was posted on social media of a student who attends Nathan Hale High School holding a gun in the parking lot at Ingraham. Police confiscated the gun from the student on the Nathan Hale campus.

I want to note one comment at the West Seattle Blog that came from a high school teacher (school/teacher not named):

As a high school teacher (not at WSHS), it feels dismaying to read all of these comments by adults with second hand information.  In our classrooms we talk to our students about not spreading information that is second hand. We talk to our students about not sharing things we don’t always know on social media. We talk to our students about how this can contribute to misinformation being spread. We talk to our students about the fact that sometimes all information cannot be shared with the public because of privacy issues.

 I think it’s important to remember that there are a lot of factors that go into an investigation at a school, not all of which we are privy to. We all want answers about safety…and quickly. Sometimes we have to trust the process and hope that folks involved are doing the best they can to keep all of us safe. 

Of course, there are missteps. But usually, things turn out okay. 

Please stop spreading information when we don’t know all the facts. Adults have a responsibility to be models for our kids. 

Of course this is true. Parents need to model good behavior to their children and lead by example.  But in the comments, I saw no parents stating info heard on social media. Most of the parents said what their students had texted to them. (Naturally, those kids might have gotten it off social media.)

I am fortunate to not have K-12 students because, honestly, it would worry me a lot. So at this time and place in our country, saying "But usually, things turn out okay" might have the weight it might have 20, 30, 40 years ago. 

The kids are NOT alright. Question is, where are the Superintendent and members of the Seattle School Board?