School fight information came too late

Published 11:20 pm Thursday, January 25, 2018

Waiting four months to get the facts about school violence is four months too long.

The revelations from a recent Natchez-Adams School District safety report  should give every county resident pause.

Four school administrators and a school security officer were taken to the hospital on Sept. 8 after a fight broke out on the Natchez High School campus.

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While none of the injuries were life threatening, the fact alone that five adults sought medical care as a result of school violence is disconcerting.

The school district and the Natchez Police Department have released few details of the September incident.

What we do know is this — 10 students were arrested. Two were arrested and charged as adults.

Tuesday’s report suggested the injured employees should “be more safety cautious when attempting to break up a group fight.”

What about the school district and its responsibility to provide a safe environment for students and teachers and its responsibility to keep the public informed about such matters?

Less than two weeks after the September brawl, the school district hired an armed security resource officer, a move  district officials said was being considered before the fight.

That is only a start.

In a time when violence regularly makes headlines, this issue is a serious one that deserves to be treated seriously by the school officials.

We understand the district’s hesitancy to reveal information they fear may be harmful to the school district. But hiding behind a cloak of secrecy, further deepens the distrust between the district and residents.

The solution to the school violence problems lies in open and honest communication about the issue, not waiting for the truth to be revealed in a report four months later.