Dear Families:
Albany High School will have additional security in place when school resumes Monday, and counselors, social workers and school psychologists will be available for any student or employee who wants to talk about the events of Feb. 17.
On Feb. 17, a fight between two students in a stairwell led to one student and a staff member, who intervened, being taken to the hospital; both were treated at the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Albany police recovered the knife that was used in the altercation soon after the altercation and arrested the student who is accused in the incident.
City School District of Albany security staff worked with police and determined that the knife was not detected during the daily morning security screening, which included backpack checks, metal detector screening and security wanding.
The day after the incident, security staff and administrators debriefed and reviewed school security protocols. During those meetings, the district’s Safety and Violence Prevention director and assistant director reiterated and emphasized enhanced procedures focusing on the safety and well-being of students, faculty and staff.
Please note that the implementation of these enhanced procedures may result in delays during the morning security screening as school personnel work to fine-tune security processes.
During the winter break, security staff conducted checks of lockers and building grounds at the high school, and also at each middle school out of an abundance of caution. No weapons or other inappropriate materials were found.
The safety of students, staff and faculty is absolutely a top priority in our school district. We will continue to work with Albany High School and local authorities on an ongoing basis to assure that we have the appropriate security and accountability procedures in place.
In addition, we will review behavior expectations with students when we return from winter break, encouraging them to report any concerns they may have to a trusted adult.
We know these situations can impact our social, emotional and mental health. Counselors, social workers and school psychologists will be available for assistance next week at Albany High. We will have support teams on-site should our faculty and staff need additional support as well.
Albany High students who would like to talk with someone can go to their academy office for assistance. Faculty and staff can access help through the district’s Employee Assistance Program.
We are grateful to our administrators, faculty, staff, students and families for their response to the events of Feb. 17. We also would like to thank the Albany Police Department and emergency medical responders for their assistance both during this incident and in our follow-up work, and First Student and CDTA for their assistance in a smooth early dismissal process on the day this incident occurred.
We look forward to continuing to work together to provide safe learning environments for all of our students and employees district-wide.
All in for Albany!
Yours in education,
Kaweeda G. Adams
Superintendent
