ST. LOUIS — A clear bag policy for events and additional searches are just some of the ways St. Louis Public Schools says it's working to protect its students following a number of deadly shootings that left 13 children in the St. Louis area dead since June.
Six of those children were SLPS students.
"I think the school system always absorbs what happens in the greater community," School Board President Dorothy Rohdes-Collins said.
The SLPS Board of Education hosted a meeting Thursday night. Superintendent Dr. Kelvin Adams presented information on what the system is doing to keep schools secure, then he and the board listened to public comments from meeting attendees.
Speakers included staff, parents, elected officials and community activists. Some called on the school board to budget for more community resources, others called for the cultural climate in schools to be more loving but all speakers agreed that the entire community must take ownership for the violence among young people in St. Louis.
"We're the first line of care," an SLPS staff member said. "When that traumatized student comes in, they're in pain.'
Dr. Adams said the most recent shooting of an SLPS student, two weeks ago, directly impacted students at 10 of the district's schools. The district's protocol is to provide crisis teams and other resources to students, faculty, and families who are impacted by the trauma resulting from gun violence.