Poughkeepsie reopens high, middle schools with new safety measures; see what's planned
Poughkeepsie high and middle schools will reopen Thursday with increased safety measures, and the district is investing in a digital safety monitoring system in the wake of a social media threat.
Poughkeepsie closed both schools Tuesday and Wednesday while law enforcement investigated the threat, finding no “credible evidence.”
Poughkeepsie Superintendent Eric Rosser said the social post claimed someone would conduct a shooting inside the school buildings on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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The threat was discovered Monday, the same day as a threat made against Roy C. Ketcham High School was sent to that school’s principal, Wappingers Superintendent Dwight Bonk said. The Ketcham threat was specifically regarding Tuesday and the school reopened Wednesday.
It remains unclear if there is any connection between the two incidents. Investigations into both are continuing, though City of Poughkeepsie Police Chief Thomas Pape noted his department is "running into dead ends" in discerning who was responsible for the Poughkeepsie threat.
Rosser said Poughkeepsie “wanted to make sure that the state and local law enforcement agencies were able to conduct a thorough investigation” and remained closed Wednesday, but “since there was no evidence to support the threat, we as a school district need to move forward.”
The disruption at Poughkeepsie follows a start to the year that included numerous fights that required city police to intervene, and a shooting outside the high school in November. However, a “reset” following that shooting in which district leadership and teachers held discussions with students left several students who spoke with the Journal more positive about the school’s direction.
As for what this scare may do to that positivity, Rosser said it is “going to be best answered when our student population returns to the schools, when our safety and support teams are going to be able to hear from students,” noting crisis intervention staff, school counselors and others will be available to provide support.
Safety changes
And, those students will be greeted by other safety measures. A notice issued by the district said all students Thursday will be subject to metal detectors and baggage checks, noting students are “advised to reduce the number of items they carry to school.” There will be “enhanced safety protocols,” “additional central office presence,” and school resource officers and safety monitors in each school.
The district also noted it invested in Gaggle, an online safety monitoring system “that will flag concerning content and bring it to the attention of staff.”
“As soon as this happened, we were looking for ways that we could be better alerted to these matters,” Rosser said, noting it not only may make it easier for law enforcement to zero in on the source of the threat, but it has a function where people can discretely pass along tips and information.
Rosser could not say how much the district was spending to obtain Gaggle, but noted it would be a discounted rate going through BOCES.
Investigation ongoing
As for the investigation, there was little police presence at the high school when reporters visited Wednesday morning. Pape noted a school resource officer was on-site.
"It's not going to go into a file drawer somewhere," he said of the investigation. "We're going to continue investigating it. Hopefully maybe we'll catch a break or somebody will say something or something will be posted that we'll be able to trace back."
The district in its message called such threats “serious,” and said “anyone found to be making any type of threat, including on social media, will be disciplined to the fullest extent and could face criminal charges.”
This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Poughkeepsie shooting threat: Schools to reopen with safety changes
