Update 3/1-
As you are aware, yesterday there was an incident at the high school where a student brought an Airsoft BB gun to school. This incident was thoroughly investigated by law enforcement and school administration. Incidents like these can often cause rumors and we are aware that there are social media posts alleging a shooting at the high school today. The high school administration and school resource officer (Saratoga County Deputy) have worked tirelessly last night and today to follow up on specific comments and individuals named in the social media posts to ensure that these rumors are unsubstantiated.
Out of an abundance of caution there is an increased presence of law enforcement at high school East and West today. We take the safety of our students very seriously and we will continue to investigate all rumors and follow all of our safety protocols.
Students and parents can be our best eyes and ears. We encourage anyone with information about any emergency threat or event to contact the school directly or our after hours emergency number, (518) 603-4923. While we understand it’s common to want to use social media as a form of communication, we ask people in emergency situations to please to contact the school principal directly, or our after hours emergency number.
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We sharing this to inform you about an incident that happened today at the High School. At approximately 10:00 a.m. a student contacted their parent to report that they believed another student had a gun on campus. That parent then contacted the police directly. At the same time some students came forward to administration with the same concerns and administration and the school resource officer (Saratoga County Deputy) immediately began investigating the matter.
The Saratoga
County Sheriff’s Department and New York State police worked quickly with our student resources officers to follow our safety protocol and investigate the incident. High School West was put in a hold in place as we investigated the matter further. The buildings were searched and friends of the student were interviewed and searched accordingly. As part of the investigation an Airsoft BB gun was found.
We understand that parents will be concerned especially in light of recent tragedies at other schools. Please know that we take these things very seriously and have ensured that the buildings are secure and students are safe.
We applaud the quick response of the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Police, and our school administration.
It is a felony to bring any weapon to school and this will now be a law enforcement investigation. Individuals accused of making a threat face felony criminal prosecution and severe disciplinary consequences according to the district’s Code of Conduct whether there is true intent or not.
Students and parents can be our best eyes and ears. We thank the parent who contacted the police and the students who came forward with information. We encourage anyone with information about any emergency threat or event to contact the school directly or our after hours number, (518) 603-4923.
We are always concerned about the safety of our students and we will continue to work with the police to pursue this matter vigilantly and punish those responsible.
