Pittsburgh Public Schools, a Pennsylvania school district, has already instituted an inquiry. This comes on the heels of a weird occurrence in which a kindergartener brought Jell-O shots to school. The incident has prompted a reexamination of our safety protocols. It has sparked the rage of parents and staff alike about the appropriateness of that kind of behavior on a school campus.
Since this event happened during a kindergarten class, the kindergartener passed out the Jell-O shots to fellow classmates. Once school staff became aware of the incident, they quickly moved to investigate and resolve the issue. That’s when the school nurse stepped in to assess the children’s needs and potential distress, and keep them safe.
In a joint statement released by the district, school officials focused on the idea that they believe this is an isolated incident. They are dedicated to continuing to provide a safe learning environment for all students and have planned for additional counseling support services. This means making mental health support staff and counselors immediately available to all students who might seek help in dealing with all that happened.
“We want to assure our families that the health and well-being of our students is our top priority. Counselors and support staff will be available for any students who may need assistance processing today’s events,” – school statement
According to Superintendent Dr. Amy D. Arcurio, student safety is the district’s top priority. She told everyone that they are taking the incident with the “maximum seriousness.” The goal of the school is to better enforce their policies and inform students on the correct way to handle food/drink items on campus.
Parents have spoken about repeatedly seeing the effect these incidents have had not only on their children, but on the children’s family. What they want to know is that most are looking for accountability from the school and reassurance that steps have been taken to protect future students from a similar fate.
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