State College Area High School returned to what the district’s superintendent described as “normal arrival protocols” on Tuesday, just over a week after it began using metal detectors at entrances following the arrest of a man accused of plotting a mass shooting at the school.
The decision to end the daily use of portable metal detectors drew concern from some students, parents and the president of the district’s teachers union, who said at Monday night’s school board meeting that the devices provided extra security and peace of mind.
The district implemented heightened security at the high school on April 14, after a 20-year-old former State College resident was charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Braeden Phillips allegedly planned to carry out the shooting on Monday, April 21, during a high-traffic period at the start of the school day and intended to place explosive devices in the restrooms in a coordinated attack.
Along with bag searches and ID checks, the metal detectors resulted in long lines the first day back after the weekend arrest, pushing back the start of classes more than an hour. After borrowing three additional metal detectors from Penn State, the process was expedited the remainder of the week, though still caused some delays.
The school board on Monday night authorized the purchase of three metal detectors to replace those borrowed from Penn State, at a cost not to exceed $54,348, but they are intended to give the district flexibility should they be needed in the future, not to be used on a permanent basis.
An increased police presence continued at the school on Tuesday, along with checking IDs of every person who entered the building.
State College Police Chief John Gardner reiterated that there is “no credible, substantiated information of an immediate threat at any of the schools in the State College School District.”
“My wife and I are the parents of two children that graduated from this school district in [2016] and [2017]. And if this incident would have occurred when my children were in school… I would have been comfortable sending my kids to school knowing what I know right now. And I don’t take that lightly in saying that. So that’s the best assurance I can give you right now. Can I sit here and say that nothing will ever happen? I can’t give you that. But I feel about this particular incident, that’s where we’re at right now.”
Molly Martin, a district parent and a professor of sociology at Penn State, said that like anyone she is terrified of the prospect of a school shooting and that a sense of safety is important for students well-being. But she pointed out that a review of research on the use of metal detectors in schools shows they are not necessarily effective in decreasing school violence.
“The research suggests that permanent long-term inclusion of metal detectors at schools actually is associated with lower sense of school safety, and it’s not clear that it’s effective in reducing the presence of weapons on campus or in reducing gun violence,” Martin said. “Therefore I recognize that there is a greater pressure perhaps to make the metal detectors permanent but I would encourage the board consider all safety options.”
She added that random use of metal detectors is associated with a reduction of weapons in schools.
But for others, the metal detectors provided a layer of safety they said was missing before and needed after the threat.
“In light of the recent threats that have shaken our high school, I want to emphasize the importance of continuing the use of metal detectors on our campus for at least another couple of weeks,” said Shai McGowan, a State High faculty member and president of the State College Area Education Association. “This past week, with the implementation of metal detectors and the increased police presence, I can honestly say that I have felt the safest I have in my 29 years at this school. It is disheartening to think that we had to resort to such measures, but the reality is that these tools are vital in maintaining a secure learning environment for our students.”
Parent Melinda Lendemann said she felt students need more instruction on specific scenarios in the event of a school shooter, and should be asked about their feelings and if they have questions. Her husbnd, Anthony Lendemann said students should be surveyed before deciding whether to keep the metal detectors.
Student Via Helling appreciated all the measures the district has taken, but said the metal detectors were “one of the best things we could do for the situation” and should remain.
“There isn’t a magical day where a threat suddenly ends,” Helling said. “Sure, we can feel safer, but I still believe that our school should maintain the security for as long as possible. … I think that even though it is much more tedious, the metal detectors should be kept, and that checking our student IDs thoroughly will really help our school feel safer where we are learning and having fun.”
Student Lia Schrag was also in favor of keeping the metal detectors in place.
“I don’t think any student should lay in their bed at night wondering if tomorrow’s ‘I love you’ is the last time they ever say it to their parents,” Lia Schrag said. “I think metal detectors, although … they are somewhat of an imposition in the morning, it takes a little bit longer to get in, it is so imperative for children to feel safe at school and it’s so important everyone to be safe at school.”
Her mother, Ashley Schrag, said it is “dismaying” that the detectors would be removed while the police investigation is ongoing, and that if they make students feel safer they should be kept.
“I think we should be proactive, not reactive, when we’re talking about the grave safety of students,” Ashley Schrag said.
School Board President Amy Bader said student and staff safety is paramount for her and her fellow board members. She said she has educated herself on all the critical decisions the board has been tasked with in her decade as a member, and that preventing school violence “is a complex multifaceted problem with no single clear-cut strategy.”
A “tight-knit” community with positive relationships between students and adults to encourage reporting concerns, which the school can foster, and keeping guns out of the hands of potential attackers, which is in the hands of gun owners and legislators, are the two factors that rise to the top in averting tragedy, Bader said.
“What I promise is that with my fellow board members we will carefully examine any tool there is to keep our community safe,” Bader said. “I feel confident we’ll continue to base decisions on evidence from experts and we will support directing district resources to the most appropriate and effective measures we can take.”
Security staff, the high school resource officer, administrators and a board representative are meeting this week for a debrief on the district’s response to the thwarted threat and next steps, Johnson said.
“Topics will include student IDs and the future use of our portable metal detectors, among other things,” he said. “Following this meeting, we will inform the board and the community of any recommended changes to our safety and security protocols.”
Investigation Update
Gardner said that while the “main perpetrator” has been arrested and there is no active threat to the school, officers are still running down leads. As in his update to State College Borough Council last week, he could not divulge many details but did offer some insights into the investigation.
According to the affidavit of probable cause filed in the charges against Phillips, witnesses who spoke to police mentioned a possible juvenile involved in the planning.
“I know some people have heard some names and they want to know why these people aren’t arrested and all the things like that,” Gardner said. “To make an arrest, you have to have probable cause. We live in a democracy. I can’t just go and pick people up off the street on innuendo or [because] I believe something happened. We have to have probable cause and that means there’s a crime committed and this is the person who probably did it.
“…When you’re involving juveniles, even if we do make an arrest, we cannot release the juvenile’s name. It’s just the law and it’s just the way it is. So we’re not trying to be intentionally cryptic or trying to withhold information, but more importantly we’re trying to develop that probable cause and and we have to do it in a way that it doesn’t hinder the investigation.”
Investigators have not seen the physical “hit list” of targeted individuals that witnesses alleged Phillips possessed, Gardner said, but have been in contact with people whose names were mentioned.
“We have heard about names on a list,” he said. “I can assure you that there have been several individuals and families that we’ve reached out to because we heard that they may have been mentioned in something like it. So we’ve reached out to them. It will be our practice if we hear that, we will reach out and notify families if we have that so that we can work with them and safety plan with them.”
Gardner credited Johnson’s leadership, along with the efforts of school security, staff and board members, throughout the situation.
“CJ has done a tremendous job here,” Gardner said. “He’s listened to us when we’ve had to have some tough conversations, because what we all want is the safety of our school community and the kids here because they’re our most precious resource and I want everybody to understand that.
“We were very fortunate to have those relationships in this community,” he later added. “So I appreciate all the assistance and help.”
Gardner also again encouraged anyone with information that may be relevant to the investigation to contact borough police by phone at 814-234-7150, email or by submitting an anonymous tip through the department’s website.
“A lot of the names that we’ve gotten through anonymous tips, we’ve already been aware of, but we continue to ask people to continue to send those to us and we will follow up,” he said. “Like I said the other day, no lead, no information is too small. We’re going to follow up on that.”
Phillips, who was denied bail, is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on April 30 after it was continued from April 16 at the request of his attorney.
