Brought to you by WBIW News and Network Indiana
Last updated on Tuesday, September 20, 2011
(BLOOMINGTON) - Nearly 200 middle school students stayed home from school after a threat was made of a possible shooting Monday.
The threat was made at Jackson Creek Middle School on the south side of Bloomington. Parents and police walked the hallways all day after the threat was made on a wall in the school.
"We know enough from living in this particular area, that we have learned a lot from the Martinsville situation, that we cannot afford to take anything lightly," said Monroe County Superintendent Beverly Smith.
The threat was discovered before students were dismissed for the weekend. An email and phone calls from the school went out to parents the same afternoon, warning them a threat had been made.
When classes started Monday morning, the hallways were noticeably quiet.
"We had 176 kids out today. Usually, a normal day would be 20-35," said Principal David Pillar, Jackson Creek Middle School.
Pillar invited police and parents to school Monday. He and others had asked parents to keep an eye on social media for any threats.
"The most important eyeballs we have are those of the kids. We have 545 sets of eyes and ears working for us. They are much more in tune to social media, those things," said Pillar. "They know when things are happening, good or bad. We turn to them, they are our first line of defense."
After a series of threats in Brown County, metal detectors were installed. In Martinsville, one student shot another outside of a middle school last spring.
The investigation of the threat has been turned over to the Bloomington Police Department. As of now, there are no suspects and for the students who stayed home from school Monday, their absences are excused.
1340 AM WBIW welcomes comments and suggestions by calling 812.277.1340 during normal business hours or by email at comments@wbiw.com
© Ad-Venture Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.