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April 12, 2001 By Aspen C. Emmett School administrators and law enforcement want to assure parents and the community that recent threats of violence at Montezuma-Cortez High School are being addressed and appropriate action is being taken. "We’re aware of the situation and we are taking care of it," said Cortez Police Chief Roy Lane. "At this point there’s no need to keep the kids home from school." MCHS principal Mark Rappe said the nature of the threats pertains to "physical harm of others and damage to the school." "Safety for students and staff is foremost in our mind and actions," Rappe said Wednesday in a written response to the Journal. Both the school and the CPD are in the process of interviewing individuals about the rumors; however, there have been no arrests and no weapons seized. "So far, all that we have are threats," Lane said. Approaching the two-year anniversary of the Columbine shooting on April 20th, Rappe said many high schools are having to respond to threats and rumors. "We’re taking it very serious," Lane said. "We’ll have (police) presence around the school, especially on the 20th." Re-1 Superintendent of Schools Bill Thompson said school is planned to proceed as usual and every safety precaution has been, and will be, taken. "We take any of these things very serious and feel we need to follow up on every one of them," Thompson said. "That’s why we get so concerned about kids that make off-handed comments and then want to say, ‘Well, I didn’t mean anything by it.’" Thompson said he has spoken with Rappe and the assistant principal, Dave Crews, and he believes they are giving the matter appropriate attention. "They’ve spent an awful lot of time on this, and contrary to what some people think, they aren’t ignoring it," Thompson said. Rappe said MCHS will be mailing a newsletter today to every student’s home concerning the threats. Parents are always welcome to drop by or attend a class, Rappe said. |
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Copyright © 2001 the Cortez Journal.
All rights reserved. |
