KANSAS CITY, Mo. — More than 10 school districts across the Kansas City region have received threats this school year. Several threats have resulted in arrests, others were not as severe.
In any case, groups of adults dedicated to helping children succeed step up to serve impacted students each time.
“Ultimately, if you feel safe, you learn,” explained Lt. Scott Archer, with the Clay County Sheriff's Office.
He’s the commander of the Clay County Sheriff's School Resource Unit, which investigates school threats.
First, the team determines the legitimacy of a threat. Secondly, the unit finds the origin of the threat.
“We still handle each and everyone as though they are of a dire interest we need to get the bottom of immediately,” Archer explained.
He said it’s common to see copycat threats make the rounds on social media in the weeks after a national school shooting like the one that took place in Georgia on Sept. 4.
Jason Roberts is now the president of the Kansas City Teachers Federation, the union representing teachers in the Kansas City Public School District.
Before leaving the classroom four years ago, Roberts taught social studies. He remembers being in stations where a school had restricted movement because of threats. He tried to keep students in a routine.
“Something might be going on, but we’re not leaving the classroom. I’m going to continue to teach, I’m going to continue to make them do their work,” he explained.
Roberts is thankful for transparency from school districts when there is a threat.
Dawn Clendenen-Moon is the director of clinical services at the Child Protection Center. In her role, she’s treated children who’ve had anxiety as the result of school threats.
She admitted there’s no one-size-fits-all approach, but she recommends families talk about threats.
“A lot of families sometimes are a bit scared to talk about the really hard stuff,” Clendenen-Moon said. “I think sometimes they think by talking about it, it could increase their kid’s fear. When actually, by talking about it, it helps mitigate some of those fears and worries.”
Archer requests students and parents report any possible threats to police or their school directly instead of reposting the threat on social media.
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KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan covers politics on both sides of the state line. If you have a story idea to share, you can send Charlie an email at charlie.keegan@kshb.com.
