Sheriff’s deputies patrolled North Adams-Jerome after staff found bullets on the grounds Tuesday. Courtesy | Corey Murray
The North Adams-Jerome middle school and high school went into lockdown on Feb. 14 after staff reported three bullets on the sidewalk in front of the schools.
The middle and high school buildings entered “hard lockdowns” around 11 a.m. after the bullets were found, according to a press release from Interim Superintendent Dan Shadik. A “hard lockdown” requires schools to shut down due to an on-campus threat. Police responded at the same time.
“Law enforcement swept through every room in the district as well as all lockers and personal belongings,” Shadik said in the press release. “No threat was made to the district and no weapons were found on campus.”
When staff and students at Reading High School received threats earlier this month, the police investigation led to the Feb. 4 arrest of an 18-year-old student.
Reading Police Chief Eric Stolberg said a student heard and reported the threat to a teacher. Reading Community Schools superintendent Martin DuBois then contacted Stolberg about the threat on Feb. 4.
Sgt. Rob Cooley of the Reading City Police Department investigated the case, and his findings led police to arrest the student who made the threat.
“The case is still technically open to the prosecutor’s office,” Stolberg said. “I really can’t go too much into detail. Even though the student has been arrested, he has not been found guilty.”
Stolberg said he heard many “SWAT-ing” calls to school districts last week.
“It does seem that when we get one threat, we get multiple,” Stolberg said. “Through the last year and a half, we’ve had a handful within the Reading schools and within the county.”
Jonesville Community Schools went into lockdown on Feb. 1 after a student called in a threat to get out of school. After an investigation, police arrested the student.
Erik Weatherwax, the district’s superintendent, said it was only a matter of time until the community would be affected due to the rate of school threats.
Jonesville Community Schools has an Emergency Operations Plan that lists the protocol for different emergencies, according to Weatherwax.
“Each incident is unique,” Weatherwax said. “These can vary in how the threat was made, when it was made, and where it was made. One incident might require you to be proactive, whereas another you have to be reactive and deal with it immediately.”
Jonesville Community Schools strives to be flexible and quick with its response, Weatherwax said. Jonesville uses threat assessments for students who pose a concern.
“We stress to our students, ‘If you see something, say something,’” Weatherwax said. “Students need to understand that what they say and do matters. An ‘innocent’ post or side comment involving the threat of violence will no longer be brushed to the side. Every threat is taken seriously.”
It’s important for teachers and staff to have a good relationship with the students and notice changes in behavior, Weatherwax said.
“You have to know your kids and this is a job that falls to everyone from our bus drivers to our teachers to our custodians,” Weatherwax said.
According to Weatherwax, Jonesville Community Schools underwent a recent security assessment, which offered recommendations for improvement.
“We also had threat assessment and critical incident response training back in December,” Weatherwax said. “We also have a good relationship with local law enforcement, who have been very supportive.”
Reading Community Schools did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication.
