Superintendent releases letter after student is found with firearm on school bus
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The following letter from Superintendent Dr. Doug Howell was distributed today to the parents and guardians of learners attending the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District 25. No additional information regarding this event has been released.
Dear Parents and Guardians:
Ensuring the safety of all students is our highest priority. We strive for open communication as we work in partnership with parents, students, and our local law enforcement. Therefore, I wanted to inform you about an event that occurred Friday, October 11, 2019.
Late Friday afternoon, we received a report that a secondary student was possibly in possession of a firearm on a school bus. Administrators took immediate action and called the Pocatello Police Department. Working with local law enforcement, a weapon was promptly located and confiscated. The student was identified based on eyewitness reports and a review of video footage from the bus in question.
The student has since been taken into custody by the Pocatello Police Department and is currently being held in Juvenile Detention. As per Board policy, any student who brings a weapon on school property or to a school-sponsored event will face serious disciplinary action.
Providing a safe and secure learning environment is a top priority for PCSD 25 and we take any violations of our policy very seriously. Security measures and protocols are in place to help us maintain safe school communities across our school district.
I want to thank those parents and students who provided us with the information necessary to investigate and bring closure to this incident. Please continue to encourage your child to let a teacher or administrator know if a situation exists that could ever place him or her or others in danger. Please remind your child: “If you see something, say something”.
Only by working as a unified school district can we create and maintain the level of safety we want for our children.
Sincerely,
Dr. Douglas Howell
Superintendent