Casey Middle to remain open on last day as amid investigation of possible threats
May 25—Casey Middle School will remain open on its last day despite a continuing investigation into possible threats against the school.
Boulder police are investigating the threats, which reportedly centered around a student and the last day of school on Thursday.
"I want to let you know that we remain in close contact with our law enforcement partners at this hour, as they continue to investigate the rumors of a possible threat against our school," Casey Middle School Principal Gabriela Renteria wrote in a letter to parents Wednesday. "Officers have been working to follow leads and it remains an active investigation."
Casey Middle School, 1301 High St., remained open Wednesday with added Boulder police and Boulder Valley School District security, and officials said the school would also be open Thursday.
"Our goal is to continue forward with school as normal as possible," Renteria wrote. "We will try to celebrate the end of this school year, while doing everything we can to keep students and staff safe."
In addition to the extra security presence, school officials said all exterior doors would be locked and visitors would have to present identification before being let in.
"Again, we understand that situations like this are unnerving," Renteria wrote. "Our counselor, school psychologist, mental health advocate and the BVSD Trauma Support Team are ready to support students who might be having difficulties. If you know of a child who needs support, please let us know."
District officials did not say whether canceling the last day of school was considered and what would happen if parents decided to hold their children out.
The threats and extra security come in the wake of a mass shooting Tuesday at a school in Texas, where 19 students and two teachers were killed.
"We will be wrapping our arms around our students and community members, knowing that the news about Robb Elementary School will no doubt retraumatize them and make many of our students, families and educators fearful of coming to school once again," BVSD Superintendent Rob Anderson wrote in a statement posted by the school district.
St. Vrain Valley Superintendent Don Haddad also issued a letter to families.
"I know that we will all be holding each other a little tighter as we reflect on the importance of every person in our community, and our purpose in public education to champion the safety, well-being, and success of our children," Haddad wrote. "This week we will pause on some of our traditional end-of-year communications to give our community time to process and heal. While this is not how anyone imagined the end of the school year, I look forward in the coming weeks to recognizing our class of 2022, and the many other outstanding accomplishments of our students, teachers, and staff."
Just like graduates of St. Vrain, Casey Middle School students were looking forward to end of the year celebrations.
Jenna, who asked not to be identified by last name, said her son was looking forward to the pizza parties and junk food extravaganzas that usually accompany the last few days of school, especially considering the pandemic robbed him of a normal school experience for the last two years.
"There's just something about kicking off summer right," Jenna said. "This is the first time he gets to be part of middle school because of COVID, he didn't get those celebrations and those festivities. He was really excited about that."
Instead, her son came home and had to tell his mother about threats at his own school while she told him about another school shooting.
"I cried, he cried," Jenna said. "My son is the same age as I was when Columbine happened, and I'm from Colorado. And nothing's changed."
After talking about the situation at his school Tuesday night, Jenna said she left the decision about whether to attend the last few days up to him. But she knew how she felt about it.
"I wanted to leave it up to him, because autonomy is important at that age," she said. "But I really didn't want him to go."
Ultimately, Wednesday morning her son decided he did not want to go in to school.
"It is hard to you hear you kid say I don't feel safe in school," Jenna said. "I swing from mad to sad, and so does he."
Jenna said she and her son are no stranger to talking about violence in schools, but tragedies like the shooting in Texas combined with a threat closer to home are still hard to process for a child, even one who has grown up in a country where they are a regular occurrence.
"I see how normal it's become for him, but sometimes even these events shake him out of the fact that he's had stay-safe drills since he was a baby," Jenna said. "He doesn't understand why adults can't fix it. And I don't get why we can't fix it."
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Resources:
* Colorado Crisis Services: 844-493-8255
* Mental Health Partners (Boulder County): 303-447-1665
* North Range Behavioral Health 24hr Support (Weld County): 970-347-2120
* Tru Hospice Services (all counties): 877-986-4766
* Walk-in Crisis Center: 3180 Airport Road, Boulder
* National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255
* Safe2Tell: safe2tell.org, 1-877-542-7233 or text TALK to 38255
* How to talk to children about violence: bit.ly/3wMOIEF
