School board members applaud coordinated response to BHS threat

Dec. 7—Members of the local school board praised the strong and swift response Glynn County law enforcement officials and school resource officers had to the recent fake shooting threat at Brunswick High School.

Brunswick High was one of more than 400 public schools in Georgia and across the country that received a false report of an active shooter situation on Nov. 30. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is now looking into who is responsible for the threats.

An administrative nonemergency line at the Glynn-Brunswick 911 Center received a call at 8:55 a.m. that day from someone who claimed to be a teacher in a second-floor room at the school. Police were told that a man had already shot seven students, according to police reports.

School police responded along with county and city police, the sheriff's office, state Department of Natural Resources officers, local FBI agents and federal Homeland Security agents. They quickly determined there was no active shooter and that the report was a hoax.

"It's just not funny," said school board member Hank Yeargan. "It's like yelling bomb in an airport or fire in a theater. You just don't do that."

Yeargan said it demonstrated the strong partnerships in place in Glynn County between schools and public safety officials.

"The response time was amazing," he said. "I've heard nothing but high praise for the response team, not only our SROs who we have full confidence in but also the sheriff's department, city of Brunswick, county police, state patrol and DNR."

School board member Audrey Gibbons echoed Yeargan's disgust with the widespread hoax. The incident brought parents and other loved ones of students to campus that day in a panicked rush as they sought out their children and hoped to ascertain their safety.

"The unfortunate incident (last week) was unnerving to teachers, parents and especially the students," Gibbons said. "We are most appreciative of the calm and well-trained action of those who were targeted and of first responders and school administrators who quickly put the building under a code yellow lockdown and initiated a search of the premises. We are also grateful that it turned out to be a stupid hoax, one that also affected other school districts along the coast, and that no one was harmed."

School board members and Scott Spence, superintendent of Glynn County Schools, were in Atlanta on the day of the incident for a Georgia School Boards Association conference.

The day after, Gov. Brian Kemp addressed school board members and superintendents attending the conference and vowed that an investigation of the statewide threats would continue through prosecution of all those involved in the hoax.

"He thanked law enforcement and school employees in their responsiveness to the situation and provided assurance that school security remains a priority of his administration," said school board member Eaddy Sams. "I am personally thankful for our teachers, staff and administrations who remained focused on student safety and for our school resource officers who were vigilant in their efforts to thoroughly and swiftly provide accurate information to be communicated to parents and our community."

Glynn County school leaders have taken a proactive approach over the years to make schools safe.

The state issued $30,000 safety grants to each public school in Georgia in 2019, which Glynn County Schools used to install secure vestibule entrances in schools and controlled access systems. It also was used to increase surveillance equipment.

"Last year, the district implemented a safety alert system that can be triggered in emergency situations by teachers and staff within the buildings," Sams said. "While many facilities and technology upgrades have been implemented, it is imperative that active shooter training for resource officers and drills involving administration, teachers, staff and students continue to occur routinely."

Efforts to increase school safety will continue to be a priority, Yeargan said.

"We're trying to learn from all the other different situations from around the country and the hoaxes that we've seen," he said. "I feel like we're taking a proactive approach. (School Police) Chief (Rod) Ellis is doing a great job of keeping us updated on the needs, and we try our best to fulfill those needs."