UPDATE: Madison Middle School starts day sheltering in place because of threat

mom April 27, 2018 (9:46 am)

Thank you WSB for this information…still waiting for communication from the school

Madison parent April 27, 2018 (9:48 am)

Thank you! This is the second time now that parents have had crappy and LATE notification. The school also needs to review its new entry rules, doors selected pose more risk!

They can call us quickly for a tardy BUT Not THIS??? UNACCEPTABLE

FJ April 27, 2018 (9:50 am)

gosh I’m super glad they manage to get robo calls out for LITERALLY EVERYTHING ELSE but couldn’t manage this one time.

Lm April 27, 2018 (9:54 am)

And still waiting to hear something from the school….. no one answers when I call.

Madison parent April 27, 2018 (10:05 am)

I even called the SPS safety and security line this AM, they were blindsided by my call and could provide no information.

UNACCEPTABLE.

King 5 is also aware and hope they ask deep questions.

Ed April 27, 2018 (9:55 am)

Fill out those parent surveys and voice your communication concerns there…I did last week

Another Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (9:57 am)

My daughter has been texting me from school with updates but we’ve received absolutely nothing from Madison/SPS about this.

Madison parent April 27, 2018 (10:07 am)

Kids walked into this on white boards while we are in the dark

Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (10:02 am)

Not to make excuses, but the office is full of parents trying to get their kids out of school.

My child was in the first period class with the student who had made the threat yesterday. That student is not at school today. Seattle Police Department has been to the home of the student that made the threat.

The school is currently in shelter in place (Not full lock down) and students are being kept in their first period classes.

Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (12:56 pm)

Agree! Unacceptable behavior by the parents.

Parent April 27, 2018 (10:04 am)

My child too has been texting me completely freaked out. The lack of communication with the District is horrible! I’m livid!

Madison Mom April 27, 2018 (10:05 am)

Abolsutely unacceptable, Seattle Schools. Only information we are getting is from our students, who are texting from there. Of all the stupid robocalls we DO get constantly, they couldn’t manage to send out the one important one? I want to know WHAT the threat was/is.

Another Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (10:06 am)

Totally agree. This is no acceptable!

B's Mama April 27, 2018 (10:09 am)

Totally frustrating – just got a text from my daughter who is pretty stressed – not sure what is being said to the kids. School/district has dropped the ball on this one and needs to fix the issue ASAP as I shouldn’t have to rely on the Blog for information (which, of course, is the first place I looked when I got the text from my kid). I’m angry that parents are out of the loop. Totally not OK – the information and apology better be coming soon.

unhappy parent April 27, 2018 (10:12 am)

nothing like a text from my kid and then no responses that leaves me wondering if “shelter in place” meant “shooter in place” and was a typo.. thanks for heart attack Madison! Glad the WS Blog could clear things up for me since they couldn’t manage an email or robocall for this in advance.

Parent April 27, 2018 (10:12 am)

My child said she’s been locked in 1st period class.

Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (10:20 am)

How on earth are Madison/SPS NOT communicating with the parents about this?? They might be able to avoid the mad dash of parents picking up their kids if they told us what was going on. On zero information, of course I’m going to get my kid. I can only guess that the kid who made the threat is MIA and that’s why they are sheltering in place.

This smacks of gross negligence, SPS, and I’m pretty sure you won’t be able to plead immunity if something truly terrible were to happen.

Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (10:21 am)

Thank you for these details!!

Andrea April 27, 2018 (10:24 am)

Our daughter was picked up, she was not comfortable being there and I do not blame her. Terrible that the school did not communicate anything to the parents.

Parent April 27, 2018 (10:26 am)

My child text and said Shelter in place will be canceled in 20 minutes…. Panicking over here..

Madison Student April 27, 2018 (10:28 am)

Today, I walked into class thinking it would be a normal day. As I walked into the school, I saw a bunch of police cars, but I didn’t think anything of it because I’ve seen police cars at school before, without a shelter and place. I walked into first period, and everything was normal… there were the normal daily announcements, and class was normal, until there was an announcement. The announcement said that’s there were a shelter and place. We continued class normally, my mom texted me, but my phone was on mute so I didn’t see it till 10 minutes later… Eventually the principal (Dr. Gary) came into our class. He explained that someone the night before has threatened to bring a gun to school. He is not at the school, and he is being investigated. Pretty much everyone in my class started texting their moms until my teacher started taking away our phones… Eventually my mom picked me up, and brought me home…

WorkatHomeMom April 27, 2018 (10:45 am)

Not only did they not inform families, but a teacher was taking away students’ phones, aka the only way families were being informed??? That makes me pretty angry. The ONLY reason my kid has a phone is so that we can be in contact in case of emergency.
- parent April 27, 2018 (11:28 am)
  
  I agree with you that taking their phones away is not OK when that is the only form of communication parents are getting. My son was sneaking messages to me. His teacher did not take the phones away from the class but threatened to do so.
- Madison parent April 27, 2018 (12:23 pm)
  
  EXACTLY!!!
  
  What teacher takes a phone away from panicking students who are trying desperately to make sense of their day and find safety?!
  
  Unacceptable!!
  - Grumpy April 27, 2018 (6:03 pm)
    
    Given today’s reality of gun violence at schools I understand the concern. However a shelter-in-place is not a lockdown. Shelter-in-place means there’s no imminent threat -it’s just a precaution – and learning should continue as usual.
    
    if students are distracting themselves with phones then it seems like the teachers are doing their job by taking the phones , because there was no imminent threat and learning is supposed to continue. Ok I’m sure if it were an active shooter situation teachers would not confiscate phones. It sounds like the school could have done a better job of downplaying the situation and reducing student anxiety so they aren’t texting parents creating more anxiety. Or perhaps it’s a clever way to get out of learning for the day.
    
    I always thought that shelter in place is a silly precaution and should be eliminated because it creates confusion. Just have a lockdown or nothing.

Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (10:33 am)

Yeah, I need WAY more information. I am livid that the school has not called, and that they were aware of a threat last night. If my child wouldn’t have texted, I would have NO idea what was happening. Glad he’s getting picked up, and his absence better not be counted against him.

Joe April 27, 2018 (10:34 am)

I am pissed! This is UNACCEPTABLE!

MadisonParentWS April 27, 2018 (10:36 am)

Great. Look at what they sent out now. Complete with edits turned on.

Clueless leaders for our kids. Nothing like effective communications, clear and transparent information, and double checking your work.

https://msg.schoolmessenger.com/m/?s=SdJoEgYuv3U&mal=eea895c15d2644287f20dcbce9ff1404452f169f3392718d7264b84a8c2bbeb0

WorkatHomeMom April 27, 2018 (10:39 am)

Thank you to all the parents who’ve posted updates. I got a robocall yesterday about last night’s event. I thought it was pretty bad timing since my son was at an outdoor field trip all day and I assumed something had happened to him. My son is home sick today. I’m sorry you and your kids are going through this today.

Person April 27, 2018 (10:40 am)

The lack of communication from Madison on a regular basis leaves me with very little confidence in their ability to handle emergencies. I did pick my kid up but if I had prior notice I would have either just had him stay home or sent him if I was confident I was getting the full story.

mjh April 27, 2018 (10:46 am)

This lack of communication is completely unacceptable, particularly since the threat came last night!!!

WorkatHomeMom April 27, 2018 (10:49 am)

Received at 10:32am

April 27, 2018

Dear Madison families:

I want to provide you with
information about a situation that has affected our school community
and assure you we are doing everything we can to create a safe
environment.

Several Madison students
last night reported to Madison’s administration and the district’s
Safety and Security office that they heard a student threaten to do
harm to people at school today. We followed district safety protocol
and contacted the Seattle Police Department, who has been working
with us to investigate the threat and keep our community safe.

I want to assure you we
take this threat very seriously. The student who is alleged to have
made the threat will remain at home until the investigation is
complete. In an abundance of caution, we started the school day
following shelter-in-place procedures. The administration team
visited each classroom to inform students that we are safe. SPD has
since advised we can release from the shelter-in-place.

We take all threats
seriously and encourage students and families to report anything
suspicious to Madison administration or Security.

We will update families on
any information regarding your student’s safety.

Sincerely,

Dr. Robert Gary, Jr.

Principal

Yet Another Madison Student April 27, 2018 (10:50 am)

The school just cancelled the stopping of the shelter in place. So many parents waiting to get their kids

DEF April 27, 2018 (11:34 am)

Confirmed per my child as well, and still sheltering in place as of 1130a.

Parent April 27, 2018 (10:53 am)

My son called and his reaction was mellow-bored. Even asked to leave because of boredom, and not from being scared. The kids were safe in their class. A huge majority of students have cellphones, so parents are likely to get notification before the school is able to send anything out to parents. Also, thank goodness for social media-trust we are never left behind. I’m pretty sure the school focused on containing the issue and had the kids safety as priority!

HTB April 27, 2018 (10:54 am)

I understand the frustration at the communication, but in fairness, it was a verbal threat — not anything tangible. When most of us parents were in middle school, this type of thing would not have required communication from the school.

Yet Another Madison Student April 27, 2018 (11:02 am)

When parents were in middle school, there weren’t as many school shootings or threats of such as frequent as there are now. School safety is a bigger issue currently and should be taken seriously to match that.
- FJ April 27, 2018 (1:22 pm)
  
  exactly. we didn’t live under constant fear of some asshole shooting us. it could have been something SO easy like “yesterday we rec’d a threat to the school which was deemed non-credible, however due to an abundance of caution, we are implementing a shelter in place for 1st period”. then, parents could have made their own decision.
AngryMadisonParent April 27, 2018 (11:09 am)

“it was a verbal threat” – How many kids are dead in this country, preceded by a “verbal threat”?
B's Mama April 27, 2018 (11:17 am)

Apparently you have some intel about the threat that most of us don’t have. It was apparently concerning enough that other kids reported the child – good for them. All that said, I am normally quite laid back about stuff, but “when most of us parents were in middle school” there would not have been a shelter in place, either. The reality is that we don’t live in the same world as we did years ago (it has been 35 years since I was in Jr. High). As parents, we just want to be able to make choices on behalf of our kids. Heck, mine still might have gone to school, but I would have been making that choice up front, not having that choice made for me by default.
- WorkatHomeMom April 27, 2018 (11:25 am)
  
  Agreed.
- Madison parent April 27, 2018 (11:39 am)
  
  Well said and spot on! Investigate all you need to but at least give parents and their children the information about a threat (don’t need all the details up front) and let each house decide NOT the adminstration or one person. As we have seen before even the authorites can miss or delay a response BUT had the information early. Lets not become statistics. Each family has a right. My daughter was chill and just wanted to be informed.

Another Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (10:57 am)

It should be noted that while Dr. Gary said that the child was at home, he could NOT confirm that he/she was under adult supervision. That does not make me feel safe at all. He also said that police left earlier in the day and were replaced by district security. It does not actually feel like they are taking every precaution, starting with giving parents the choice of sending their child into potential danger today, given that they had advance notice of the threat yesterday. Epic fail.

not a madison parent April 27, 2018 (11:17 am)

Yes, it is bizarre that, the School District knew about this yesterday and had planned on the protocol for today (shelter in place). Why weren’t parents notified ahead of time ? And why the shelter in place if the police and official were already at the potential threat’s home?

AngryMadisonParent April 27, 2018 (11:07 am)

Let me get this straight.

Madison learned of a potential gun threat last night and contacted the police. Dr. Gary issued a robo-call to parents that failed. Dr. Gary decided to keep the school in session, issuing a “Shelter in place” directive for all students. SPD showed up at Madison this morning AFTER the kids were already in school. Presumably, SPD showed up at the suspects home AFTER the kids were either in transit to school or in school. Seattle Public Schools was “blindsided” by this news this morning. Dr. Gary lifts the “Shelter in place” and sends a letter out stating they take these threats very seriously…

How are these actions demonstrating taking the situation seriously? I feel like my son was unnecessarily put in harms way, with very poor communication and a lack of competence in handling the situation! I don’t find any of this acceptable!

Yet Another Madison Student April 27, 2018 (11:36 am)

This information is useful, but he did not lift the shelter in place. We are still in first period, and have no idea when we will be out.
DeeplySuspicious April 27, 2018 (11:54 am)

I’m right there with you. Add to that the report of teachers taking away and/or threatening to take away the kids’ phones, and I’m double-furious.

I’ve heard time and again that the day’s attendance is linked to the funds schools get, and that makes me really wonder if the endless emails and robocalls we get for every-other-damn-thing was “mysteriously” not working before school this morning due to financial motivations. The thought makes me sick, and I sincerely hope I’m wrong… Because if the administration put school finances ahead of our children’s safety, or our own rights as parents to determine for ourselves the level of risk we felt was acceptable for our children, that would make them nothing more than craven, cold-blooded bureaucrats, and totally unfit to care for our children.

We need to demand a thorough explanation and breakdown of how this happened – after we get our kids home safe and sound.
MadisonStudent April 27, 2018 (12:17 pm)

The police were at the school before school started.
Madison student April 27, 2018 (1:44 pm)

Correction, it was not Dr. Garry’s decision to keep school in session, this was purely the super intendant’s choice.

brandon 5406 April 27, 2018 (11:37 am)

Very proud of those kids that stepped up and informed the Administration what they had heard/seen. Opposite feelings for the way the Administration informed the parents.

DEF April 27, 2018 (11:38 am)

Still sheltering in place. Unclear why, given the text and subject line of the letter sent out ~45 minutes ago.

Madison Dad April 27, 2018 (11:41 am)

The fact that nothing was sent out to the parents and the student’s cell phones were taken away shows that they are well aware of their incompetence and trying to cover it up. I am completely appalled by Madison and SPS as a whole. This is not the way to handle a situation and there should be some sort of recourse.

MadsMom April 27, 2018 (11:42 am)

Agree with AngryMadisonParent. One thing to add: My son was really alarmed by the announcement over the intercom by the principal. He described him as yelling and said he wouldn’t have been so upset but for that, and for him using the term “shelter in place”. Shouldn’t he have been projecting calm and reassurance? It really sounds like the kids were unnecessarily alarmed. What a cluster.

Madison student April 27, 2018 (1:40 pm)

This is an unfair critique, Dr. Gary did his best to stay calm under the immense pressure of a possible school shooting. As a Madison student, I believe that he was not yelling in the slightest and in this instance I could not see how it could be perceived as that. He was simply informing the teachers not to release students and the urgency in his voice was due to the serious nature of the stituation.

WorkatHomeMom April 27, 2018 (11:48 am)

“Shelter in Place Lifted” is the subject line of the letter sent at 10:32am. Students reporting they are still sheltering in first period at 11:36am. Yeah, they’ve got this whole thing handled. <– Sarcasm

Tlauer April 27, 2018 (11:49 am)

Why did they do to school today at all? It seems to be that protecting human life is more important than anything they could have been doing today academically. Unfortunately past experiences have shown that we need to take any and all threats seriously. Why are students there at all today?

WSB April 27, 2018 (12:17 pm)

Just for context’s sake – in all the threat-at-school situations we’ve covered, I don’t believe any local schools have closed for the day because of a threat. A couple situations in past years:

This past March at Denny – https://westseattleblog.com/2018/03/safety-denny-international-middle-school-reports-threat-made-by-student-says-police-determined-it-was-not-credible/

A 2016 threat at Denny/Sealth – https://westseattleblog.com/2016/05/checking-why-police-are-at-denny-international-middle-school/

Those campuses have an annual safety-policy meeting that we cover every year, where this type of incident is usually brought up.

The Madison PTSA has had safety meetings in the past – its website still has a link to our coverage of one in 2015.
- Denny / Sealth Mom April 27, 2018 (4:14 pm)
  
  Thanks for the perspective.
  
  I know all theMadison folks are scared and mad. Been there myself. If I may offer some thoughts
  
  shelter in place and lock downs are not the same thing and what ever teacher wrote lockdown on the board needs to be retrained.
  
  It is NOT helpful for parents to rush to the school to get their students out of class I know it’s your first instinct but your doing more harm then good
  
  You will never get the full story from Adm or District or will you get it in a timely manner It has to go through so many hands to make sure it doesn’t violate privacy laws for students etc Principal will write, send to district, they will evaluate, send to PR and lawyers etc it takes forever And I’m sorry that you have wait but it will come
  
  I’m so glad that all the kids and staff are safe and I hope none of us has to go through this again But I think it will happen again, don’t panic
  
  Takes a village W Seattle
  
  all the best
  - MadisonParentAlso April 27, 2018 (5:22 pm)
    
    Thank you for this.
    
    I was one of the parents who got my kid. I encouraged him to stay but by the end of his three hour stint in first period he was feeling sick, was still scared and wanted to come home. I fear his trust in the school has been severely damaged and we’ll have to work on building it back.
    
    I admit to some confusion regarding shelter-in-place versus lockdown. My understanding was that s-i-p meant the external doors were locked and the internal activities carried on as usual. This was not what happened at M today. They were in effective lockdown, restricted to one classroom, blinds closed. They were allowed to move around the room and have class (then watch a movie) but could not leave for their second or third period.
    
    Considering the threat was not within the school I do not understand why they had such restriction. It caused more fear and anxiety than was necessary.
    
    That, plus the terrible lack of communication, result in a rather unpleasant experience all round.
    
    For the record, I did explain to my child that in the event of an actual lockdown I would not pick him up because I would not want to make an unsafe situation more unsafe. By the time he came home it was clear to me the situation was over and I was purely reacting for my own anxious child.
    
    Again, thank you for your perspective. Today (and other M issues) finds me considering a move to Denny, tbh.
  - Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (1:02 pm)
    
    AGREE!!!

Madison parent April 27, 2018 (11:51 am)

Kids still in rooms, no education being provided, what a cluster f***!

I want this on the school board agenda and a parent meeting in the Madison commons in the next week!

Who is responsible for the response plans and are there parents and law enforcement on the committee that reviews and develops them?

M April 30, 2018 (1:38 pm)

When is the next school board meeting? I can’t believe what a s***show this was and would very much like to see what they have to say about it.
- WSB April 30, 2018 (2:15 pm)
  
  May 9th. Full board calendar:
  https://www.seattleschools.org/cms/One.aspx?portalId=627&pageId=15493

Yet Another Madison Student April 27, 2018 (11:52 am)

Shelter in place ends at 11:55

Alison April 27, 2018 (12:00 pm)

I just picked up my son. I got an email while I was there that the Shelter in Place had been lifted by the SPD. Teachers and Office Staff were personally retrieving kids from class to bring to their parents and making sure they were with who they were supposed to be with. I believe that they were going to continue the Shelter in Place protocol so that they could easily find kids. Mine was still in first period class at 11:45. Although the communication was lacking, they were very diligent at the school regarding keeping our kids safe.

Susan April 27, 2018 (12:01 pm)

My son reports that they are now still ‘Shelter in Place’ not because of the potential threat but because of the many parents in the office there to pick up their kids. I’m not going to rush to judgement until I learn all the facts, many of the previous comments include assumptions. Mistakes may have been made, or technical snafus may have happened, but let’s learn the facts before vilifying the administration.

Alison April 27, 2018 (12:42 pm)

Agree Susan.

SS April 27, 2018 (12:01 pm)

The school absolutely should have sent an email or robocall this morning. But otherwise, it seems like they have been handling it okay. The shelter in place is still in place (according to my son’s text) because so many parents are picking up kids they need to know where those kids are. I don’t blame parents for wanting to get their kids, but the school can’t find them all if they’re moving around on a weird schedule. My son is doing fine at school right now and they are playing games in science class. This unfortunately is the new reality in this country and likely not the last time there will be a threat at school. Again, Madison should have notified parents, but the shelter in place seems reasonable.

Andrea April 27, 2018 (12:03 pm)

I would have been pissed if my daughter had her phone taken away. She is at home now and better not get this absence counted against her.

Nichole April 27, 2018 (12:12 pm)

Livid that I had to hear about this from my Child!! She should have never gone to school today. They knew last night about the threat, this was avoidable. The school needs to be more transparent. As a working single mother I was so terrified and scrambled to get to my child based on information from her.

MadisonStudent April 27, 2018 (12:14 pm)

I personally know the student who made the threat and think the school is taking this way out of proportion.

Alison April 27, 2018 (12:43 pm)

Well, now you and they know that threats are taken very seriously and should not be thrown around. It’s not funny. A good lesson for you and all the other students. Those that said something to an adult did the right thing.
M April 27, 2018 (1:19 pm)

That child’s parents should be responsible for all the extra costs to the city of Seattle for this whole incident. That would also teach an important lesson. This is not a joke.
Another Mom April 27, 2018 (2:51 pm)

This is why we have places like Remann Hall and Echo Glen. It’s not normal to threaten to kill your classmates.

Ed April 27, 2018 (12:18 pm)

For equity reasons, I hope parents who don’t have access to email or whose native language isn’t English are receiving a phone call.

Realistic April 27, 2018 (12:35 pm)

Unfortunately, NOT EVEN

Jim P. April 27, 2018 (12:26 pm)

I fail to understand some of the hysteria: Kid makes a threat, kid is not at school and under watch apparently. School is in red alert, headless chicken panic mode anyway?

Do they think the kid who made a threat will launch a tactical air strike with drones or something?

There is an effective 100% chance at least ten or a dozen children will die in traffic accidents across the nation today, and more tomorrow and every day. Why is there no panic over that?

Is there no sense of proportion and reason left?

Madison Parent #293592-a April 27, 2018 (1:47 pm)

Hi Jim,

Great questions. As a Madison parent, I was most concerned that we received no communication from the school. The first we heard of any of the shelter in place or the threat was from my kid who was at school and stuck in her first period class.

In fact, SPS knew about the threat at 7pm last night (this was stated to us by Dr Gary at pickup) and failed to notify us. Whether that failure was technical or purposeful I do not know and doesn’t matter. The fact was there was a threat and it was not communicated properly to parents.

So to your points:

Kid makes a threat – We did not know this until we were at the school to pick up our kids.

kid is not at school – We did not know this until we were at the school to pick up our kids.

under watch apparently. – This was NOT confirmed; SPS could not comment on this except for stating “entities were involved”, which I took to mean SPD and/or KCSherriffs.

The confusion and “headless chicken panic mode” was entirely because the school failed to communicate throughout the evening and even into the morning.

The most important thing I found personally was the school is extremely unprepared for an event like this. The sheer confusion this caused for parents is one thing. However, there was absolutely no sense of leadership or organization happening at the school. I put my name on three different lists to pickup my kid and it took nearly an hour to get her. We were shuffled from room to room because again, nothing was organized and the plan changed every five minutes.

A serious review needs to be occur for how Madison reacts to these types of events.
- Another Mom April 27, 2018 (2:58 pm)
  
  Could not agree more.
- WorkatHomeMom April 28, 2018 (9:28 pm)
  
  Excellent points.

Student April 27, 2018 (12:46 pm)

I AM LIVID.

Madison student April 27, 2018 (1:19 pm)

I am livid to my dad tried to pick me up and he waited there for 40 MINUTES there was no communication what so ever. I was stuck in a class room for 3 HOURS not knowing what was happening. I was in total fear.
- MADison student April 27, 2018 (1:44 pm)
  
  No communication between ANYONE. One thing is bad communication between the kids, but the parents? Absolute chaos.

Student April 27, 2018 (12:50 pm)

This school does not care about our well being they take away students phone when there is a threat of a school schooling!! Absolutely unacceptable. The only thing we the students were told was that we were unable to leave the room and that there’s nothing wrong. One teacher even told us that calling our parents and having them pick us up was an inconvience! Seattle public schools is an absolute discrase and if your thinking about sending your child here I would recommend finding somewhere better!

Madison parent April 27, 2018 (12:54 pm)

Just so everyone knows the school was aware about this threat last night! And instead of calling parent and informing them of the situation they decide to say nothing and put our children’s lifes at risk. Also my child told me a teacher said that one reason they didn’t cancel school was because of state testing. This is unacceptable

P****D OFF MADISON PARENT April 27, 2018 (1:08 pm)

As already stated above WHY were our kids even slightly put in harm’s way by allowing them to attend school today in light of all the fatal school violence that has occurred in this country already??? If you knew about this last night Dr Gary WHY did you not follow up to see if the supposed Robocall generated obvious concern from ANY parents??? Are you that willing to roll the dice with our kids safety? I certainly hope for your sake and ALL our kid’s sake this student that made the threat never sets foot in Madison or any other normal school again. You should be ashamed of yourself Dr Gary for even saying that you took this seriously! P**S POOR example of a leader…

alki mom April 27, 2018 (1:17 pm)

Can you even believe this is happening in a country like the USA?? This is so crazy, I just don’t understand how the entire country does not go on a general strike until something is done about Gun control.

S April 28, 2018 (8:31 am)

We have gun control already in the US, and those laws need to be enforced. But again you know that bad people that want to do harm don’t follow laws, so any new Laws will not help. What really needs to happen is figure out why the mental stability of kids is out of wack.

Go on strike until schools are made safe for kids at all times. We protect airports and government buildings why not schools.

Former Madison Student April 27, 2018 (1:25 pm)

this is the exact reason i left this is utter madness they should warn the parents before school starts

MADison Student April 27, 2018 (1:41 pm)

The school knew that there was an active threat. Of course, the reasonable thing to do is let the kids go to school, not inform the parents, AND LEAVE THE KIDS IN SHELTER IN PLACE FOR 3 HOURS. Props.

MADison April 27, 2018 (1:41 pm)

UNACCEPTABLE

Neighbor April 27, 2018 (1:50 pm)

We’ve really failed our kids here. I just can’t get my head around a country that can’t even keep kids safe in school.

Kids afraid at school makes this a failed country.

Madison Student April 27, 2018 (1:51 pm)

I’m actually a student at Madison and I have to walk to school. As I walked into school, I saw a ton of police cars parked outside of the school. I’ve seen police cars outside of the school before, but this time there were much more than usual. I dismissed it as being yet another one of those days with a surprise fire drill or something, then walked inside. Before school, everybody usually waits to go to their lockers in the lunchroom, talking and such. None of the doors were locked to the school, everything was normal… but when we got to class we weren’t allowed to leave for the bathroom or water. When the principal, Dr. Gary, came on the announcements and announced it was a shelter in place, everybody was really confused and thought it could be a drill, but after waiting in class for over two hours, we figured out that a kid had threatened to “shoot up the school” the day before. Afterwards, classes were chaos. We were supposed to be doing State Standardized testing in fourth period, but because three-fourths of the class had been picked up by parents and because the class was only 20 min. long, we couldn’t do anything. Now, it’s 5th period and the same goes. It turned out that the shelter in place lasted so long because the staff were, frankly, a bit lazy, and wanted to be able to easily get students to their parents even thought there was no threat after an hour of first period.

Another Mom April 27, 2018 (3:15 pm)

So sorry you kids had to go thru this today. Let’s hope this doesn’t happen again. And if it did, things would be handled differently. Parents can’t help but to worry about their and others children.
German Bee April 27, 2018 (3:40 pm)

Not allowed to use the bathroom and water,while more than 2 hours in shelter???What are those for methods? School Principal and Staff showed irresponsible behavior.

Student April 27, 2018 (1:56 pm)

This is unacceptable

Realistic April 27, 2018 (2:13 pm)

In my opinion this is not as big as parents are making it to be. However, I do think the school administrators and SPS should have been upfront with their community.

Communication is key.

Back to listening.

jissy April 27, 2018 (2:13 pm)

Oh, but don’t forget: “The primary duty for Seattle Public Schools is not to educate children but to keep them safe.” – said by your newest Seattle Public School Board member, Leslie Harris at a local community conversation, January 2016. Right……

Brenda April 27, 2018 (2:27 pm)

I just want to say thank you to the parents and classmates that reported the threat to the proper authorities! And thank you to the school officials and policy officers for treating the threat seriously! I’m grateful.

SS April 27, 2018 (2:37 pm)

I don’t think they should cancel school unless there is an imminent threat. If SPD got involved last night and determined it was safe, school should continue today. This is now the world we live in. I hate that this is the way our country is now, but that’s the reality.

As far as why we don’t know more about the student who made the threat–he/she is a minor. I obviously don’t like any threats being made, but that’s for the police to figure out. It’s a middle school student and the details should be kept from the public. We don’t know if that kid had parent supervision today, but the school was clearly on the lookout. I’m upset this happened at my kid’s school and I really wish parents had information ahead of time, but I’m glad he went there today. He was safe and he learned to carry on and adapt.

just wondering April 27, 2018 (3:01 pm)

Glad everyone is o k. Hope student who caused the panic gets needed help.

Question I have is about students phones. Where do they keep their phones? On their desk on mute? Or in their pockets on mute? Do they continually check for text messages?

Another Mom April 27, 2018 (3:33 pm)

They are not supposed to be out. Definately on mute. If they’re out they can be taken away.
MADISON PARENT #293592-A April 27, 2018 (4:02 pm)

Hi Just Wondering,

I can’t speak for all students, but I can relay the experience with our kid at Madison. Her phone is kept on mute/vibrate mode and is usually in her pockets. I’m sure she communicates with other students during the day on it. I believe the school rules state phones are not to be used during school hours, though I think those rules are enforced more strictly by some teachers than others.

We recently had a kerfluffle with a teacher that took our kid’s phone for the day. Apparently their primary teacher told them to use their phones to research for a project they were working on because there’s not enough computers available, but the next day the substitute for that class took any phones that were out and being used for the exact same purpose. I told my kid for the future to not relinquish her phone to a teacher, but to go to the office and have them call me directly. I’ll be happy to chat with school officials but they are not to take my property.

Lots of comments in regards to “this is the world we live in now” – and yes, I agree. Which is precisely why our kids should have access to tools to communicate directly with us. No teacher should take a phone away. If the student is creating a problem with the phone, they should be sent to office. In the event an emergency does happen, I want to be given the best chance to reach my kid because “this is the world we live in now”.
- WorkatHomeMom April 28, 2018 (9:37 pm)
  
  Again, great information.

Another Mom April 27, 2018 (3:03 pm)

I couldn’t get to my Child until 12:30 today. His words, “Mom, you have no idea how scared I was today.” I’d like a public apology from the child that threatened his classmates.

Whateva Man April 27, 2018 (3:04 pm)

The world we live in today…

Maybe, just maybe, they deemed the threat from last night not serious enough to raise alarms? And maybe they didn’t notify parents just yet because the accusations were not even confirmed as credible? Then maybe, just maybe, new information came out this morning while children were in route to the school? And then maybe, just maybe the school did the best it could in a confusing situation? I don’t know? Seems maybe folks here have a lot more information as to what all went down between now and then? Maybe, just maybe, we should be thankful our children are safe and now we can use this as way to lock down better procedures for future situations like this since it doesn’t look like we are ever going to regulate the Rambo’s of this country.

Another Mom April 27, 2018 (3:40 pm)

Maybe, I see where you’re coming from. The only info we got was from our kids texting us in absolute fear. And then the rest of the info came from the blog. That’s really sad. Yeah. It’s good they’re safe for now.
Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (1:25 pm)

And maybe parents should not throw fits to get the doors opened during a SAFE environment of a Shelter in Place! Thereby risking my kid’s safety and all the other kids in the school!

Madison Teacher April 27, 2018 (3:26 pm)

Today was tough for everybody and I understand a lot of parents are concerned, but many of these posts and attacks are unfair.

Dr. Gary called all staff into an emergency meeting at 8:25am this morning. He told staff the police and SPS know and determined school should go on this morning. He said only the Superintendent could cancel class but chose not to. He told staff he contacted the West Seattle blog to make sure people know what was happening. He said police made contact with the student in question (and his family) last night. The student has been immediately expelled. A lot of people are jumping to conclusions and making assumptions without some of these key details.

I know it’s been a frustrating day for many, and yes communication can improve, but much of this was communicated to the higher ups in the district downtown and this was how they handled it.

WSB April 27, 2018 (3:36 pm)

Thanks, Teacher. As we wrote above, the principal told us a robocall and letter were going out to parents early in the morning. Since the district system is a closed system, for families and not media, I have no way of verifying whether it did or didn’t – one person in this thread mentioned getting something, otherwise commenters and people who messaged us said texts from their kid(s) were the first they had heard. The office staff told Patrick when he went over after we started hearing from people that the robocall *had* gone out.
- WhatCommunication? April 27, 2018 (5:19 pm)
  
  As a parent, I can confirm that the very first I heard about any of this was the email I received at 10:23 this morning. It contained very little hard factual information, and some of the information (that shelter in place was lifted) was incorrect. What I *did* tell us was that the school was aware of the issue the night before, and we (those of us who had not already been contacted by anxious children) were first hearing of it well into the school day. As parents, we have a responsibility to not only be the ultimate decision makers as to what is in our kids’ best interests safety-wise, but also to safeguard their emotional health. With all the shootings in the news, I NEVER would have knowingly subjected by child to hours of stress and worry had I been given appropriate information in a timely fashion.
  - Tara April 27, 2018 (11:17 pm)
    
    I agree
  - Fj April 28, 2018 (12:40 pm)
    
    Agree. No robocall went out. I get them on my cell, my home, and spouse’s cell. Zero robocalls came through yesterday. They are full of crap and lack basic communication skills.
- WorkatHomeMom April 28, 2018 (9:41 pm)
  
  I received no Robocall to any of the three phones that receive Robocalls in our family, a land line + two cell phones. There is a log of these Robocalls and whether or not the call was answered by person, machine or did not go through. Check the log.

Reallynow April 27, 2018 (3:54 pm)

The person making the threats clearly has issues. But reading all the comments from FREAKED OUT “parents” shows where the neurotic kids come from. Not getting an instant personalized phone call the end of the world?? Taking their phones away is the end of the world? really?? Solving all the issues we do have in society will only happen if clear heads prevail. From all the comments made so far the search continues……

Another MMS parent April 27, 2018 (3:59 pm)

WSB covered another threat on March 8 (pasted below). No letter or call about this incident. It always bothered me. “Sadly, there has been an increase in false threats, all of which require and receive police attention,” Seattle Public Schools spokesperson Kim Schmanke told WSB today after we contacted her about a reader tip. She was talking about the district as a whole; we had asked her about one specific instance mentioned to us today. The reader had heard of a possible threat and police presence at Madison Middle School. Schmanke hadn’t heard about it when we checked in, so we went to the school to ask. Assistant principal Ronnie Belle told us that a police officer had stopped by the school earlier today to take a report on an incident earlier this week. Belle said a student had made remarks that concerned other students enough to report it to administrators. The student was “counseled,” Belle said, without going into specifics of the counseling or what the student had said.

WSB April 27, 2018 (4:09 pm)

Thank you, Another Parent … my husband thought he recalled going to Madison not that long ago to check something out but it didn’t come up in the back end search I pulled for my earlier comment … I’m not feeling well and operating at about half-strength, which means my institutional memory is a bit downgraded at the moment too.

Meantime, I just checked again with SPD looking for the narrative on the original report from last night and it is still not available. So that means not until Monday … at which time I will check again.

Student at Madison April 27, 2018 (3:59 pm)

Most of us keep our phones in our lockers, pockets, and sometimes on their desks always on mute. Most teachers will confiscate a phone that rings, or if a student is on their phone during class without permission.

just wondering April 27, 2018 (6:18 pm)

Thanks for your answer!

Proudpugetridger April 27, 2018 (4:00 pm)

@WHATEVA MAN. Are you thinking this child is a “Rambo” that we need to “regulate”?

As a Father, I clearly understand the hyper near-panic that this type of situation creates. In the aftermath, however, let’s all quit piling on the staff that did everything possible during the hecticness of the situation. It sounds like the robo call system failed, which certainly wouldn’t be the fault of Dr Gary. It also sounds like Dr Gary appropriately used “an abundance of caution”, despite all signs that the situation was well under control. Another fact is that multiple parents completely exasperated the problem by barging in and demanding their kids be released. Given all that occurred, it seems like the folks at Madison did a decent job of managing the situation as well as they could. The bottom line here is that a child made a huge error in judgement. …of course all you “experts” that are so critical of everyone else’s performance would have NEVER messed up when you were in middle school. Drama much??!?

Fj April 28, 2018 (12:43 pm)

Are you high? He made an error in judgement? No, he made a gun threat. A mullet might be an error in judgement. Gun threats? Pretty serious.

Madison Parent April 27, 2018 (4:51 pm)

I am grateful for several things:

1.) The children did the right thing and reported these threats to administration!

2.) The administration and police took the threat seriously and acted on the information they had to protect our kids.

My issues with the response:

1.) This threat appears to have been identified last night. If the administration was planning to treat the day as anything other than a normal day, parents should have known that before sending kids to school.

2.) It would appear there is a severe lack of nimbleness at the school and district levels when it comes to assessing such situations and providing timely information and coherent guidance to the school community during a threat response. That should be fixed. Getting a robo call hours after my child’s school has initiated a security protocol is not acceptable. It should be minutes and it should provide actionable information to parents on what the district expects them to do.

3.) Due to the messaging issues, parents (and children) found ourselves uninformed, frightened and reacting as if the severity of the situation was perhaps more that it truly was. That fear (uninformed as it may have been) became the driving force for many parents (and children) and potentially exacerbated the situation at the school as we took matters into our own hands. Prompt messaging and setting clear expectations would go a long way to helping us avoid worsening the situation.

One thing that is unclear to me is why the school chose to ‘shelter in place’ given
that it appears the child making the threat was not even at the school
this morning. Is that true? If so, what problem was the ‘shelter in place’ solving?

WSMom April 27, 2018 (4:52 pm)

As a Madison parent, I just wanted to say thank you to the kids who reported their concerns, thank you to Madison leadership and staff, and thank you SPD for doing the best you could to take care of our kids. The bottom line for me is that everyone was safe. No one got hurt. From that perspective, the system did what it’s supposed to do. The system worked. Was it perfect and what everyone thought it would be or should be? No. But I am grateful for the outcome and feel this is a great learning opportunity.

Madison Dude April 27, 2018 (5:26 pm)

There was a staff meeting after school today and steps are being taken to rectify this so that it doesn’t happen again. It is certainly understandable that some parents are angry, but let’s perhaps take a step back. To suggest that Madison teachers and staff don’t care about the safety of our students is just flat out wrong. The staff at Madison is top notch. Yes, this was an unfortunate incident, and it could have been handled much better. But there was never a time when any students were in any actual danger. A mistake was made and steps are being taken to fix it. I don’t know what else we can ask for, but I think the idea of canceling school because some student popped off is ridiculous, considering that they knew who it was and the child was not allowed in school. The police handled the situation at the child’s home, and assessed that there was no imminent threat. The shelter in place was a precaution, and if there had been any real danger today this would have been handled differently with an actual lock down. The fact that the police assessed everything and left the school in the hands of district security should tell you that there was no real danger.

The school is taking this very seriously, so maybe take it down a notch or two with the judgment and the nasty comments.

WSMom April 27, 2018 (9:18 pm)

Totally agree, Madison Dude. Let’s not be nasty to one another. My daughter goes to school there and I know she was taken care of today. If you work there, sorry you are all getting beat up today. Hope everyone can pull together, be constructive and move forward.

just wondering April 27, 2018 (5:58 pm)

Thanks for your answer!

HoopDeeDoo April 27, 2018 (6:04 pm)

Assuming the district went into today knowing that MMS would be put in immediate SIP why not just cancel school? Why would you allow students to enter a building that was going to be SIP??? lockdown???

MB April 27, 2018 (6:33 pm)

I just feel compelled to respond on behalf my own actions….did we as parents overreact? Perhaps. However, if we’d been given ANY communication beforehand, we could have acted rationally. My child has been through numerous drills while at Madison and I wholeheartedly commend the administration for doing these. However, the one distinction that my child has passed along to me is that “lockdown” means that there is an imminent threat AT the school, whereas, “shelter in place” is less significant. I received a copy of the whiteboard message which very clearly read, “…lockdown!” When I received a copy of this message with absolutely NOTHING else to go on from the school my mommy instincts kicked into overdrive. Had I had anything else to go on, I would have left my child at school and trusted the administration. I knew nothing and I couldn’t fathom what my child was going through, I just needed to see/hold/support my child as I knew even if it was nothing after all, it was probably still a bit disturbing. When I picked up my child they were more concerned about MY wellbeing than their own. They reassured me that THEY received a message very early on from Dr. Gary that this was a “shelter in place” and they were not in any danger. My child felt safe the entire time and, again, was more worried for their friends that seemed really upset. My child assured me that around 10:00 Dr. Gary came on the loudspeaker and again reassured everyone that there was no more concern and the “shelter in place” would soon be lifted.

Did the administration ‘drop the ball’ in communicating to us? Yes, for sure. I was definitely rattled this morning, however, after hearing my child’s side of the story I feel significantly better. Thank you to everyone at Madison, I’m certain you have our kids’ safety and well-being as your number one priority. However, if the situation were to occur again, I would probably react the same. Information is FREE and you’re denying everyone by not sharing more.

WhatCommunication? April 27, 2018 (7:19 pm)

Thank you for writing this. I was thinking the same thing. There’s a lot of armchair quarterbacking and 20/20 hindsight commenting going on here now. These folk seem to be forgetting how things actually unfolded and what info parents had throughout the morning. I’m looking forward to learning more about how we can move forward to avoid this kind of communication snafu in the future.

Alki resident April 27, 2018 (8:06 pm)

My last kid graduates high school in June. I’ve seen years of unrealistic responses from Seattle public schools as I too went to schools here.

What Ive read today has proven to be a complete shi!show of unpreparedness, confusion, secretiveness and bs. It’s pretty clear to me that SPS are NOT prepared for a real event and I’m appalled. Zero communication to parents until a day later and even then it’s not clear what the plan is.

If you want a competent quality school for your kids here on out, get OUT of the SPS system. They are failing YOU.

Mad-ison April 27, 2018 (10:35 pm)

Every student and every staff member is home safe tonight. Thank you to all the staff and security personnel who helped protect other people’s children today.

Lem Charleston April 27, 2018 (9:18 pm)

Good
afternoon,

We
chose not to comment immediately after or during this horrific incident as
our emotions are frazzled as well. The principle and staff though on
the back foot did the best they could with all the resources they had available
to them. Sad as it may seem all schools need a device that will contact all
faculty parents’ students and staff by email, cell phone, and land lines.
There should be a one touch key stroke devoted to high intensity
emergencies such as this. Many work places have them where they notify
employees by cell phone, email or Instant Messaging services of a
potentially life threatening event. The technology exists. We need to make
sure our schools get it, utilize it, and familiarize staff faculty, students,
and parents, with this system. I completely share and concur with 90%
of the emotions and sentiments of many of the parents on this blog. I am
aware that in an event like this, one’s mind goes everywhere and nowhere at the
same time and in an instant terror fear and grief can overtake you. As a parent
we dismiss those emotions to get to our children as quickly as possible,
I saw many traumatized people today I was saddened and disgusted at
the lack of methodology and training displayed. I am sure the faculty and
staff understand the need for superior cutting edge technological
system such as I stated earlier, and we as parents demand the
Seattle Schools acquire those systems now. I don’t just feel your pain I shared
your pain as my wife only found out through the WSB and moments LATER
received a text from our youngest child validating what we hoped was a
miscommunication.

I
know we can do better……

Lem
Charleston

WorkatHomeMom April 28, 2018 (9:56 pm)

They have the technology. It’s frequently used for non-emergency communication at both the school and district level, and is very simple to operate. They either did not use it or it failed. We still don’t know.

WSmom April 27, 2018 (9:30 pm)

I appreciate many of the comments here. Parents who had to deal with this today, I hear you. Alki Resident: just hush. The vague SPS bashing is silly. For good or ill, our kids have the ability to communicate with us instantaneously. The district does not. The school does not. Put yourself in the place of the administrators, teachers and staff who had to go through this. Not one person had control of what was unfolding or how to communicate it and when. Not the police, not SPS security, not MMS admin. who were beholden to the police and to the district, including the supt who is the only one who can “cancel” school. Not the teachers who we’re operating with the limited info they were given. None of us know exactly what happened. Letters, especially in a case like this, have to be vetted by the district. The principal can’t just shoot off an email. And then when an email was sent out, obviously, as quickly as possible, there’s criticism about the editing. If it HAD been an actual lockdown, I would rather staff be concentrating on protecting my child than on telling me about it. The shelter in place turned into a lockdown because of all the parents showing up. Imagine the chaos if students were in the hallways and adults were coming in and taking kids out of the building! Not safe. And I honestly don’t understand this. I’m not bashing. But why, if you think there’s an imminent danger, would you go and try to pick up your child?! They are safe. Let them stay that way. And I can’t even imagine the complaints if school had been cancelled for the day. There’s no winning in a situation like this. Kudos to the staff, faculty and administration at Madison Middle School. I have no doubt they have my child’s best interest at heart. God bless them.

Alki resident April 27, 2018 (10:33 pm)

Ws mom ” just hush”? Who are you to tell me to hush? You’re clueless in the situations I’ve witnessed in Seattle schools over the years. I have every right to vent that without you stomping me down. School should’ve simply been cancelled today and the issue with the kid doing the threat should’ve been dealt with. The parents and students did not deserve all of this confusion and there should’ve been a better system in place to communicate. And quit making excuses for SPS.
- Another Mom April 28, 2018 (6:24 am)
  
  Yes, love you
Susan April 29, 2018 (7:01 pm)

Bravo WS Mom, well said.

From good old West Seattle April 27, 2018 (10:03 pm)

The school’s letter says the children reported the threat last night. Why was school not just canceled & the threat evaluated?

Another Mom April 28, 2018 (6:24 am)

Right??

WE ARE NOT THEIR PRIORITY April 27, 2018 (10:13 pm)

Clearly two issues…

1) SPS district-level safety and security handled this situation professionally and successfully.

2) The school and school staff failed to communicate to families. Instead, parents blindly and without warning sent their children into the school. The school did not arm parents with the ability to make their own safety and security decisions concerning their own children.

Communicating effectively to families is clearly NOT a priority for this school office staff and the principal. If it was a priority this thread wouldn’t include more than 100 comments, and close to 100 parents would not have yanked their children from the school today.

Let’s also be clear – today was an opportunity for the school’s principal to display leadership. Inform, calm, show empathy, assume responsibility. Instead, he chose to tow the company line: “I followed SPS procedure and policy.”

And that doesn’t qualify you as a good leader… it just means you do enough to cover your own butt.

We should all expect more. Why the hell wouldn’t we as these are our children…?

Another Mom April 28, 2018 (6:37 am)

As a parent, and SPS employee, which I’m quitting on Monday morning, I’m livid but it’s f-ed, the school and Dr. Gary must follow district protocol. They literally depend on head office. It’s not the schools fault. It’s the breakdown starting at head office. He’s a great man. The office staff are wonderful. I’ve said many comments on here. The district is not prepared. For anything. Go get your children folks, every time.

PRINCIPAL GARY SPEAKS April 27, 2018 (10:39 pm)

**Principal Gary will attend School Board Dir. Leslie Harris’ community meeting Saturday (4/28), from 3-5 pm, at the Delridge Library. If anyone has questions/concerns…

Mike April 27, 2018 (10:59 pm)

“For good or ill, our kids have the ability to communicate with us instantaneously. The district does not. The school does not. “

Uhhh, they text me about days school will be closed. And email…and call.

J April 27, 2018 (11:47 pm)

I am glad my Madison child does not have a phone at school. I got the email that the shelter-in-place was lifted, read that there was no imminent danger, and got with my day. So did my child. The mass hysteria broke out when kids with phones began texting and parents decided to pull kids out. That’s when learning became disrupted. My child said some kids were texting to get taken home just because they could get a day off, and very few were worried or scared. I am impressed by how the staff helped everyone feel safe, especially those with expectations of no cell phone use in class. I wish it were a school wide policy.

WSmom April 28, 2018 (11:49 am)

Amen.
- Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (1:19 pm)
  
  Thank you!

WSmom April 28, 2018 (12:23 am)

Sorry Alki Resident, you’re right. I don’t know your story.

Mike, when you get those texts and emails and calls, they are not sent instantaneously. You receive them instantaneously when they’re sent. Big difference.

WE ARE, Please do not denigrate the office staff. You don’t know what their priorities are. I can’t imagine what they went through today.

Mike April 28, 2018 (9:00 am)

WSMOM, the systems are in place to automatically send out texts, emails and calls within seconds. The difference is the district and schools are not using the systems that are in place.
- WSmom April 28, 2018 (11:45 am)
  
  Sorry Mike, but that’s just not true. When it snows, the superintendent doesn’t walk outside, stick his finger in the air, and walk back inside to send a text to parents. There’s a whole protocol that needs to be followed. Again, in a situation like this, information can’t be sent out right away. There are numerous legal considerations, including the privacy of the student making the threat, and protecting those students who came forward, as well as not jeopardizing an ongoing threat assessment and investigation. I know it sounds simple. But if you’ve ever been in a fluid situation with high stakes, you know how quickly things can change, and how nuanced communication becomes. I know it feels good to proclaim there’s a simple solution and that the people in charge were just too stupid to think of it, or worse, just didn’t do it. It’s not true.
  - WhatCommunication? April 30, 2018 (9:30 am)
    
    And yet, I know via a customized email AND voicemail received by 5pm any time the attendance office thinks my child missed one of her classes. In fact, due to SPS testing, I got these notifications Thursday night that they thought my daughter missed fourth period. Think about the effort of processing each class period’s attendance reporting, for each specific child in the entire school, and sent to that specific child’s contact methods, with child-specific information in each email and voicemail. If the attendance office can do that daily, believe me, the school has the technology to send out ONE, non-customized, vitally important blast communication to the school community. Let’s stop making excuses. It’s possible. They didn’t do it.
    
    To be clear – I do not blame Dr. Gary specifically, nor do I have any complaints about how school staff handled things. I believe they are dedicated, hard working people who care about our children, and I am grateful to them for extreme grace under pressure on Friday. That does not stop me from feeling strongly that this could have been handled better from a decision making and policy standpoint.
    
    And to those of you vilifying the parents who expressed their worries and concerns here, or who chose to pick their children up when communication was scarce? Well, bully for you, Cool Cucumbers. You can sit there after the fact, feeling superior and using language to describe other parents and their actions like “hysterical,” “barged in,” and “demanding” all day long. Feel free to keep your heads in the sand as to what is going on all around our country in regards to gun violence if you must – that’s YOUR choice – but whatever combination of motivations drive you, be it extreme confidence, a superior attitude, willful ignorance, or veins full of ice water – your opinions and snide, belittling remarks won’t stop me or any other parents from doing what we think is in our children’s best interests or advocating for increased safety measures and communication. If our “hysteria” bothers you that much, feel free to scroll on by…
    - WSmom April 30, 2018 (8:42 pm)
      
      That’s not how the attendance system works. It’s automated, clearly. Which is why we get notifications in cases like the one you mentioned. AGAIN, for those of you continuing to insist on this, yes. Of course the technology exists to send a text blast or whatever. That wasn’t legally an option. Dr. Gary literally met with theSuperintendent today about this very issue.
      
      i think parents’ responses varied too according to the age and temperament of their child. There were many 7th and 8th graders who just wanted to go home early on a Friday. From what I heard, it almost became a status thing or a competition. “Oh your mom hasn’t come to pick you up yet?”

Madison Teacher April 28, 2018 (6:46 am)

I understand parents being scared about their children during the shelter in place on Friday. Being a parent myself I have had that similar fear when there was a threat at my daughters High School. Being a teacher at Madison during this possible threat was definitely stressful. Parents need to understand that Dr. Gary did not have the authority to make the decision to close the school. He could not make that choice. When we met as a staff there was nothing said about a failed robo call to parents. I don’t believe he made an attempt at doing a robo call. Dr. Gary was following the protocol set down by the district and the police. Dr. Gary assured us that everything was being checked out by the police and that there was extra security on campus. I knew at that point that even though this was a situation I did not want to be in or that I wanted my students to be in it was my duty to keep your children safe. I was thankful that students had reported what they had heard and that we had the extra security to keep us safe if we needed it. We all new the student was still being investigated by the police and they were not coming to school. Dr. Gary and the school district did take it seriously enough to make sure we were all safe. At the end of the day Dr. Gary called us back in for a meeting to process what happened. There was not one teacher there that complained that school should have been called off with the knowledge of a threat. We did talk about the cell phones and how important it is to allow students to be able to talk to their parents in this kind of situation. We also, talked about other ways that we could have made it even safer if it ever happened again. Maybe school should have been called off and maybe parents should have been communicated in a more timely manner. I think Dr, Gary will take these comments into consideration to make our school safer and to give the parents a chance to feel that their child is safe. It sucks that gun control and mental health services are not stronger in this country so that parents, students and teachers don’t have to be put through this kind of fear. I hope there can be a brighter future so none of us have to have this kind of fear again.

S April 28, 2018 (8:40 am)

Again there is plenty of Gun control in the US, we just need to enforce the current laws. The real thing that needs to happen is stronger mental health services and find out why kids are like this now.
- wtaf April 28, 2018 (11:10 am)
  
  Yes, S. Exactly.
  
  They want us to x-ray our kid’s heads every 6 months just to check for cavities, we immunize them, we take them for yearly physicals, screen for this, screen for that, but no one has ever once ever suggested any type of mental health screening for any of my kids, or for any other kid that I know of…
  - WSmom April 28, 2018 (11:35 am)
    
    You’re right. It’s just that simple. If only all of the people who have studied child development, psychology and mental illness for the past century had thought of that! It’s just like filling a cavity.
- Wrong April 28, 2018 (11:33 am)
  
  And again, more gun control, and better gun control. Great job by the school.

LJ April 28, 2018 (8:21 am)

@madison teacher. Thank you for your insight, I appreciate our teachers and Dr Gary. I believe the school had the safety of the students top of mind, thank you. However you lost me when you attempted to deflect the poor communication by the district/school (area of opportunity to improve, yes?) by blaming lack of gun control.

How would gun control stop a troubled kid from threatening violence, or improved the district/schools communication strategy?

Thank you to the students and their parents who informed the school of the threat.

Cheers.

JL

WSmom April 28, 2018 (11:32 am)

Gun control would help because the threat would be empty. Authorities would still need to follow up of course.

To to those claiming that it’s all about mental health care, sometimes it’s just a kid saying stupid sh-t for attention. But because there are guns in the home, it has to be treated very seriously. It would be harder for the kid to make a bomb than walk into the school with a gun. THAT is why gun control would help.
- LJ April 28, 2018 (1:16 pm)
  
  @wsmom. Great idea about gun control. We should have a law that says middle school kids can’t own guns or bring them to school, don’t forget background checks. Oh… never mind, we already have that. Do you suggest we push a button and make all guns disappear? Knee jerk scream of gun control is not helpful. Security for our kids, better parenting, identifying kids who have issues and addressing it are all more realistic.
  
  Cheers.
  - WSmom April 28, 2018 (10:13 pm)
    
    Who’s screaming? Why do you hear “make all guns disappear” when I say “gun control?” It would be nice to know what kind of weapons are immediately available to an impulsive, angry kid, that’s all. If the legislature would pass the bills on bump stocks, high capacity magazines and enhanced background checks, it would make our communities safer. If they would also fully find public education in this state, we can get to work on the increased security, parent education/ support and help for kids with issues. Lets do all of it! Our kids our worth it.

S April 28, 2018 (8:46 am)

It seams like there is a hysteria going on about the safety of the kids on Friday. That was probably the safest time at school for them. The kid that made the threat was contended and being watched.

The really concern will be the next coming weeks, when you realize that kid will not be watched every second of everyday and those parents have to head back to work and have to leave him alone since he will not be at the school being watched.

anonymous.today April 28, 2018 (9:19 am)

Here’s an IMAGINARY scenario that COULD be related to what was going on: Maybe the district and/or police determined yesterday morning that it was important to determine whether a few specific students knew of the threat or were warned of the threat, or were even prepared to participate in the threat in some manner (even if as part of a joke or something). That sort of an investigation would not be shareable, and would not be conducted while students are allowed to mingle in that bathrooms or at their lockers. With investigations of that nature, the school basically has everyone freeze in place, while a very few students are questioned.

I don’t know anything about the specific case, but I do know something similar was going on during a long lock-down a few years ago at a nearby school in a neighboring district.

wtaf April 28, 2018 (11:04 am)

So is the student who threatened to “shoot up the school” going to be back at school? Or since they didn’t do it yesterday is it just assumed they never will or what?

WSmom April 28, 2018 (11:26 am)

Thank you Madison Teacher. Thanks for being cool and calm for your students yesterday and going about your business. I’m sorry you had to go through this.

I wish my fellow parents and community members (who seem to live for opportunities to bash SPS on this blog) would give the school and district the benefit of the doubt once in a while. No one commenting here has all the facts. It’s not as simple and straightforward as you want to make it. I think we all know this, but it feels better to pretend otherwise, and to pretend that we have all the answers and could have done a better job under the same circumstances, even though we don’t know what those circumstances were! I’m tired of educators being characterized as either bumbling keystone kops or nefarious tricksters. It’s absurd and offensive.

Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (1:03 pm)

Thank you!!! Well put.

Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (1:11 pm)

The biggest issue in this situation is the parents that picked their kids up from school DURING a shelter in place. At least 50-80 parents showed up, pounding on the doors and throwing fits DEMANDING the MMS security UNSEAL A SAFE BUILDING so they could retrieve their child. Let’s get something straight, my child was in there as well, and you put my kid and every child in that school at risk by doing that. Now, I do understand the the communication was not great. I also understand that we need more details regarding our expected role during a shelter in place or lock down. But I also think it is common sense not to breach the security because we want to helicopter in. I have already volunteered to help MMS to come up with a better plan in these situations. The threat was not even internal. It was not imminent. There’s a lot of bashing without understanding the processes and levels of communication that must happen internally before action takes place. Please, be part of the solution instead. And use your name if you are going to slam the school.

Person April 28, 2018 (3:48 pm)

Come on now, no parents were demanding anything. Parents I saw were merely asking why no communication and why SIP if no threats. Staff were handling things wonderfully considering. All I know is people were concerned there was a threat and knee nothing except what was being discussed on Facebook. I decided to take a walk and saw parents calmly talking to the security guys. I was under the impression the SIP would last awhile and the security guy was encouraging people to take kids home. I figured might as well. It’s too bad the robo call didn’t work. That would have solved all of this.
- Monique Dawson April 28, 2018 (5:03 pm)
  
  What time were you there? During the Shelter in Place or after? Parents continued to pick their kids up for the rest of the day. My daughter had 12 kids in her afternoon classes. What is this? Maybe for the moment you were there it looked like the right thing to do. Every child that left during the SIP was supposed to be escorted down the halls. There were also kids that just left school. All of these things create bigger problems. If this was, in fact, an emergency these things would have made it twice as bad. I’m looking forward to the parents learning what they can and cannot do during these events. It will help the school tremendously. Imagine all of those parents and kids coming in and out of the school all day. Where are the resources going?
- Susan April 29, 2018 (7:40 pm)
  
  @Person what time were you there is a better question? “No parents were demanding anything” is untrue. There was an angry father who was so belligerent and abusive yelling at office staff that he had to be escorted out of the school by security. Nice, huh? The overreaction by many parents totally exacerbated the situation. And “parents calmly talking to security guys…” a better use of the security guys time would have been letting them do their job keeping our kids safe.

Suzie April 28, 2018 (11:41 pm)

Parents & Madison school hi I now have a 2nd child attending 6Th grade Madison school 2018 and had my first child older sibling attending Madison Middle School 4 years ago. I understand the school – system doesn’t want to lose money by kids not attending school or overreacting alarm of fear for everyone but honestly why no communication to all Parents until 10 am something email?!!! Why make the students and teachers be under that kind of stress Friday “shelter in place” that’s not educational or feeling safe at all!!! What a nightmare!!!! I say Just cancel school that day!!! Human life, good mental health and safety is way more important than continuing school under that kind of major stress pressure for that day. Better safe than sorry … whatever the case is?!!? I hope the child that threatened is helped!!!! ?! So sad and heartbreaking!! Our families need to stay connected to the schools , community and the families we raise! Stay connected to our hearts! Maybe slowdown and stay listening to our children… ♥ We are all connected in some way or another. I hope for better communication from the Seattle school system because this delayed communication is not working!!!

Sincerely ,

a very concerned parent!

Parent T April 29, 2018 (2:00 pm)

I hadn’t checked out these posting since midday Friday and was amazed to see the volume of messages. Clearly a lot of passion about this issue and this specific event from all sides.

In the light of a new day, a few more thoughts:

– Thank heavens for the West Seattle Blog! We are so fortunate to have this resource in our community.

– We need clearer definitions from the school and the district of the terms “Shelter-in-Place” and “Lock Down.” We saw images of kids in Florida that sheltered-in-place by barricading doors with furniture and chairs, clearly an appropriate response in that situation. What were MMS teachers directed to do on Friday when the level of threat was an “abundance of caution”, and what was their appropriate level of response in the classrooms? Do we need another term? The fact that the kids were held in classrooms all morning was at some point due solely to the glut of concerned parents picking up their kids — when that situation changed, but it was still inappropriate to release the kids to the hallways, could there have been a different term applied to that “hold in place”?

– The upside of this incident is that it served as a stress test, a dry run under pressure, thankfully in a situation where no one was hurt. The district (especially) and school administrations, school staff and faculty, and even the parents can learn from it. Did I make the right choices? Did I communicate effectively? Did I react appropriately? Did I help the situation or make it worse? What would I do the same or differently next time?

Melissa Westbrook April 29, 2018 (4:55 pm)

Good thoughts but I’ll just add.

What are the protocols that the district has communicated to administrators and school staff?

Were they followed?

If the school knew this the night before, why no communication to parents until after the shelter-in-place started?

I’m not sure there’s a “react appropriately” for kids. They are young and some got scared and wanted to communicate with their parents. Hard to fault them for that.

I suspect that we might hear more about this.

I did write about this at my blog and will be interested to hear what parents at other schools might think.

MadisonParent April 30, 2018 (9:10 am)

I think this is all a pretty good learning opportunity (aka what turned out to be a poorly executed drill) on improvements to make with the SPS system. This could have easily been another sort of emergency that needed to be communicated – fire/earthquake.

They need to come up with a clearly communicated plan on how the communication protocol will work for the parents and kids. This isn’t hard.

Trust has been broken between the district, students and parents. We all need to feel like we are one team and safe.

Instead of jumping on what went wrong, since that’s obvious, why don’t as a community we use this forum for suggestions on how we’d like to be communicated to?

SPS is obviously overwhelmed. Let’s help with executable suggestions on how to positively fix this.

NewMadisonParent April 30, 2018 (12:19 pm)

Well said, @MadisonParent.

I found a Blog post from 2015, recording of Dr. Gary providing details about the Shelter in Place protocol. At 49 minutes, he explains the difference between S.I.P. and “lock down” – which is very helpful including the part talk about escorting students out of the building for parents pick up. At 54 minutes, he talks about the challenge of parents hearing of it from kids with cell phones before an official communication. “it’s not going to take an hour to make a robo-call, it make take 5 minutes”.

According to this, the robo-call should have gone out in the morning before school and if for some reason it didn’t, then it should have gone out immediately after school started WITH AN APOLOGY. At this point, the school has not even acknowledged that a robo-call should have gone out and never did. This is how trust is broken.

With regards to actionable steps, I would first like to see an ‘After Action Report’ or audit of the situation so that all parties can learn from it.

Beyond that I’d like to see each school year begin with a review of a parent/student handbook with basic safety and security plans including the expected communication plan and contact information.

-Roy