Stapley Junior High hosted a Parent Safety Meeting on Thursday, Sept. 19. At the end, parents were asked to submit any follow-up questions they had. Here is a list of questions and responses.
How are credible threats determined?
When we use the term non-credible it means there was no actual intent.
How far removed are access to weapons determined?
No access to weapons means there are no guns in the home or they are locked up, additionally, the family confirms there are no friends or other family where their child could get a weapon.
How can the kids warn their friends if they see a post and don’t feel safe? It’s natural to want to protect those you care about.
Of course we all want to protect those that we care about, but the best way to do that is to report the post to a trusted adult or law enforcement. This allows those best equipped to investigate and increase security measures as appropriate.
Are those that report the threats informed of the outcome once a threat has been assessed?
No, we do not report the results of the threats investigations to individual reporters.
Are you developing a dedicated email or phone number for parents and students to report?
We do have a silent witness hotline for the district - 480-472-7867. If a report about Stapley, or any school, is submitted, district security works with administration to investigate.
In addition, have you thought about developing protocols for students and parents in situations like this? Not everyone wants to pile on another phone call for you to respond to, and just want to be kept in the loop.
We are continuously reviewing our safety protocols and evaluating the need for additional steps, thank you for this suggestion.
Are teachers giving any leeway or support for kids who were absent due to feeling unsafe?
Please contact the principal with your concerns about your student's absence and make-up work.
While it was helpful to know of the administration's dedication and willingness to return all phone calls and address parents' concerns, I believe many parents hold back from calling in order to not inundate school officials with an unmanageable volume of calls. What is the administration's primary method of broadcast communication to inform parents of any current situations? Under what circumstances can we expect communication?
You should expect communication from Stapley in several modalities including Thrillshare and our weekly newsletter Stapley news. Communication on threats is sent out on a case-by-case basis and is coordinated with district security and the Mesa Police Department.
How does a student access counseling or emotional support resources while at school if needed?
All students can talk to a counselor or administration if they have further questions or concerns. We also want to encourage offenders to let administration know if there are any repercussions or negative interactions with other students once they return to campus. We will put supportive measures in place to ensure ALL students feel safe and a sense of belonging at Stapley.
Did the administration attempt to call all the families on the “list”?
The school administration did attempt to contact all families on the "new list". However, not all families were able to be reached before this meeting, as some did not answer the phone and this is not the type of information to share in email or over voicemail.
I am worried that there is only one SRO at Stapley Jr. High.
We do have one SRO at each Junior High School as well as district security personnel. When we are made aware of threats, we also increase security to support the school with a reallocation of other school and district resources.
It was mentioned tonight about a level 5 discipline that means that the student would be relocated to another school. Is Stapley currently accepting relocated problem students from other schools? If so, doesn’t this seem like this would go against what was being discussed about safety tonight.
Part of the discipline of Level 5 violations can include assigning the student to a success school here in Mesa Public Schools. Students are assigned for a specified amount of time, and then based on phasing criteria may be permitted to return to their home school.
Arizona does have an open enrollment statutes that are primarily located in A.R.S. 15-816. Mesa Public Schools ensures that they are in alignment with state statute and federal statute when evaluating all open enrollments.
My daughter talks about lockdown drills and she had concerns about security inside the rooms. Is there anything I can tell her to make her more comfortable about that?
Thank you for sharing your concerns with us. The school administration will work to improve implementation. When the doors are locked and secure, your student is safe inside the room. Our doors are heavy duty and very difficult to breach. Only the police are allowed to enter and they will do that with a key. We have protective film on all the windows. Intruders typically seek out unlocked doors.
I wanted to know if the child was coming back to the school and what were the consequences to his actions besides being suspended and possibly coming back to school.
Thank you for your question, we are still working through the due process discipline procedures from our discipline matrix for these situations. Due to privacy laws, we are unable to share specific discipline given to students, but please know that the safety and security of students and staff are our highest priority.
Does the school offer drug education and prevention or resources for students?
We offer intervention for students returning after a drug offense (LEAD). In addition, we provide outside resources for parents looking for additional support. Please contact the school administration or counselor for details.