Incident at Bradley Hills - Are our MCPS kids safe?
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Anonymous
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This is terrifying. Do we still send our kids to school?
————————- Dear Bradley Hills Elementary and all the communities in the Whitman High School Cluster, We are writing to inform you of an extremely serious incident that occurred on school property at Bradley Hills Elementary School and to share the actions being taken in response. Today, graffiti was discovered on a fence at Bradley Hills Elementary School that included the name of the perpetrator of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting in 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut. To be clear, the use of the name of an individual responsible for such a heinous act, one that involved the loss of life of young school children, can only be interpreted as an act intended to intimidate and cause fear within the Bradley Hills School community, and the broader neighborhood and community, too. Please know that this despicable act will be met with a substantial and uniform response from multiple divisions of MCPS and the Montgomery County Police Department. As soon as the graffiti was reported, MCPS staff documented the graffiti and a separate MCPS building services team has been assigned to begin the process of removal. We expect that team to be on site to remove the graffiti shortly, and the work will be completed before the end of the evening. The incident, of course, was reported to the Montgomery County Department of Police, and an investigation is underway and is in its early stages. We also want to acknowledge that this comes on the heels of the incident involving an outdoor storage shed being intentionally set on fire on school grounds this past week. At this time, it is unclear whether these incidents are connected, but that possibility is being fully investigated. School camera security footage and information have been shared with the police to support their investigation. We understand how both of these incidents are extremely unsettling and concerning for students, families, staff, and neighbors. Please know that school leaders, security team members, and our law enforcement partners are taking this very seriously. The police have committed to an increased presence as we return to school this coming Monday morning. MCPS will also have an increased security presence at the school on Monday and increased patrols of the area around the school through the weekend. We are sharing this same message with all schools in the Whitman Cluster community and are asking for your help. If you have any information that may assist in this investigation, please contact the Montgomery County Police Department non-emergency line at 301-279-8000. You may also report information anonymously through the Maryland Safe Schools Tip Line at 1-833-632-7233 (1-833-MD-B-SAFE) or online at https://schoolsafety.maryland.gov/pages/tipline.aspx. Acts like this absolutely do not reflect who we are as a community, and we will fully partner with the police to support their investigation of this incident. Dr. Peter O. Moran MCPS Chief of Schools Marcus Jones Chief, Division of Safety and Emergency Management |
Anonymous
| The two boys who did racist graffiti at Pyle a couple summers ago had no consequences. It will be interesting to see whether something different happens under Thomas. This could easily be the work of the same dirtbags. |
Anonymous
| MCPS is clearly ok with this if they will not put more money into security and safety. |
Anonymous
| Why haven't we seen pictures or footage of the suspect(s)? |
Anonymous
| This is concerning. I hope the OP will organize with other parents at her school to request additional ongoing security at the school, especially on the playground. |
Anonymous
Did you read the post? There isn’t a suspect. |
Anonymous
| It's more than concerning. Someone tried to burn down a shed with PE equipment but wasn't successful. Then, they came back the next night and succeeded in burning it down. Then, they (or someone) came back a week later and spraypainted Sandy Hook graffiti at the school. And the response from MCPS and MCPD is some platitudes about taking it seriously. We should see more concrete steps and reasons to believe they're going to keep our kids safe. |
Anonymous
Talk to folks like Jwando who don't believe in safety and security as his kids are in privates. We need monitored cameras 24-7, 3 times as many security at all schools and add security to ES. |
Anonymous
They said there will be increased police presence and increased school security. What other concrete steps are you suggesting they take? |
Anonymous
Stop being reactive. Be proactive. This will do nothing. It’s performative. They need to get ahead of these incidents happening and start giving students real world consequences. Something that makes them rethink their choices. These incidents keep happening because they know MCPS or MCPD won’t touch them if they are a minor. There are no consequences. Why would anything change. These community notes just demonstrate the level of insanity CO operates at. Nothing will change because nothing changes. They are pathetic. |
Anonymous
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How do we know these are minors playing pranks? What if it’s a cry for help - someone actually facing a mental health issue / glorifying Sandy Hook suspect / interested in shooting up the school?
How the hell is this county keeping our kids safe in school? My oldest is in a Whitman cluster ES, and I’m very nervous. |
Anonymous
1. Release the footage from the cameras that cover the area of the arson so people in the neighborhood know what to look out for and what to look for on their household cameras. 2. Commit to having police at the school going forward, which would provide a measure of safety and a deterrent effect. Those are small things in comparison to the threat, which isn't idle given that someone was bold enough to burn down the school shed. There isn't any good reason not to do those things. |
Anonymous
| That is terrifying. |
Anonymous
| There should absolutely be police at the school during school hours. I would be most worried about recess, and want a big police presence during that time or indoor recess. |
Anonymous
It's wild that the letter from MCPS posted above says, "The police have committed to an increased presence as we return to school this coming Monday morning." Is that it? They're going to help kids get into the building safely one time then leave? |