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February 11, 2013
Office of the Superintendent
Calhoun County Schools
On December 14, 2012, a mentally ill 20-year-old fatally shot twenty children and six adult staff members in the village of Sandy Hook, Connecticut. This tragic event has affected us all in every city and town across this great nation.
In response to this event there have been numerous anonymous bomb and shooting threats made to schools in West Virginia. Recently, a bomb threat at Calhoun Middle High School caused the evacuation of the building and release of the students while first responders and law enforcement officers searched the entire building. A bomb sniffing dog was transported from Morgantown to assist in the search. Fortunately, the threat was a hoax, and a suspect was interviewed by the West Virginia State Police; an investigation is ongoing. Nevertheless, we must always err on the side of safety when it comes to protecting our children.
In 2006 the West Virginia Legislature created a School Access Safety Funds program administered by the West Virginia School Building Authority. Since that time our school system has expended $127, 670 from this program in installing security systems to make our schools safer. The most visible of these is our remote identification system that allows office personnel to see who is seeking entrance to our schools prior to releasing the lock. Many other security systems and equipment are in place in addition, but should not be discussed in open forum lest those who might harm our children be made aware.
As construction begins on the new Arnoldsburg Elementary School, we are exploring with our architects and the School Building Authority a new product that might be available for use in making the windows bullet proof. If this product passes testing, it can also be applied to windows in our current buildings.
Finally, I want to assure everyone that the Board of Education, Superintendent, and all staff and faculty are committed to employing every possible measure to keep our children safe. Each school has conducted, and will continue to conduct drills to assure everyone knows what to do in these types of emergencies.
I also want to thank all law enforcement and first responders who were involved in the bomb threat at Calhoun Middle High School for their quick response and coordination with school officials. It takes a community to keep our children safe.
Roger D. Propst
Superintendent of Schools
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