CLEARFIELD – School safety was a matter of concern at Monday night’s Clearfield school board meeting.
During the public comment period, a mother of two children sought answers about what the board proposed in order to make student safety a priority.
This year alone, she said there’s been three gun threats and multiple “soft lock-downs,” which is a precautionary procedure that limits movement within a school.
Because it’s been such a concern, she said, the junior-senior high school held a school safety assembly with the district attorney and juvenile probation supervisor for all grade levels.
During her report later in the meeting, Senior Student Representative Zoie Sidorick said the assembly covered topics such as the importance of school safety and consequences students would face for making any type of threat or displaying an act of violence.
However, despite such ongoing school safety issues, the district failed to notify parents until students were subjected to a “community-wide” threat Oct. 2, the concerned mother said.
“Then, they were capable of sending [parents] an e-mail.”
Not even 10 days later, she said there was another school safety situation where buses were dismissed prematurely after a pep rally leaving eight band students stranded without access to safe transportation home.
Following her concerns, the mother asked how the board planned to rectify them and restore peace of mind to its school children.
Superintendent Terry Struble responded, asking if she had received his voice message from last week. She indicated that she’d already spoken with him, the Board of Education and Department of Transportation.
“I want to address the board.”
When there was no further public comment, board President Greg Clarke explained that it’s always been the board’s position to “listen” and “learn,” rather than respond to concerns immediately.
