Administrators, police join forces to investigate report, keep building secure

Students faced another breach of security as another threat cropped up in the neighborhood outside West. As students, teachers, and staff were preparing to leave school on November 19, they were brought up short by a surprising announcement that the school was going on a secure hold to allow police to respond to a safety concern near campus. Students were kept inside the building until approximately 3:55 p.m. when the safety incident was reported resolved. After the secure was lifted, buses began their usual routes on a delayed schedule and extracurricular activities proceeded as usual. 

The secure was implemented after law enforcement received an anonymous tip that an individual riding a bike near the school had what appeared to be a firearm in their pocket, which was later revealed to be a BB gun. The tip came in at 3:23 p.m., giving administrators little time to coordinate their response before school ended. West Principal Rebecca Montour credits the school’s ability to control the situation with swift communication between administrators and law enforcement.

“Officer [Angel] Nunez let us know right away, making sure we didn’t let anyone outside,” she said. “They called the secure, and I made the announcement. We beat the bell by around 30 seconds.”

In response to the safety concern, officers from across the city came to search the area for individuals matching the report, identify secondary threats, and gather information from community members in the area, according to Nunez. 

“The Oshkosh Police Department will respond with every officer that’s available and kind of flood the area so the school is safe,” he said. “The entirety of the Oshkosh Police Department was working and trying to help out with this. That includes our detectives and our patrol division.”

Once at the scene, law enforcement quickly identified the individual reported in the tip, according to a press release the Oshkosh Police Department made concerning the incident.

“An officer observed the subject with the firearm near a church in the area; the subject quickly left through residential yards but was located approximately a block away and detained,” they said. “An extensive search of the area produced a hidden facsimile firearm in the area the individual was initially seen by an officer.”

Students like sophomore Grace Schellinger, who was in math class at the time the secure was put in place, tried to piece together an understanding of the situation as they watched events outside the school.

“Everyone was pretty confused,” she said. “Then, since we were in the E Wing, we could see out the window that there were cops around the church, and so you’re kind of just watching.”

Although the report raised serious safety concerns, the actual nature and purpose of the secure was informational in nature, according to Montour. 

“The secure was just so that the police could talk to the people involved and see if there really was a weapon,” she said. “They wanted to make sure it was safe for students coming out of the building.”

Senior Alyssa Vigil, who was preparing to leave choir when the secure was announced, feels that, because of the myriad other security threats West has faced, the secure did not instill too much fear. 

“It didn’t affect me too much emotionally; I think because there are a lot of holds and such here that usually aren’t a safety concern,” she said. “Because I was on the other side of the school from it and inside and everything that’s happening was outside, I felt okay.”

Schellinger believes that staff took important steps to keep the school safe, and the strongest student response she observed to the incident was irritation at being unable to go home as quickly as usual. 

“I feel like it was handled really nicely,” she said. “You could see that there were a lot of people standing near doors, and even if they didn't have a class they were still making sure everyone was safe.”

Administrators were glad that students responded as responsibly to the situation as they did. Montour was especially relieved because the secure was put in place so close to the school’s regular dismissal time.

“It was the end of the day and people had sports and work, so I thought students were going to be really angry about it and we’d get a lot of people who didn’t care,” she said. “But everyone stayed where they were supposed to and everyone took it seriously. It was really incredible.”

Though students were remarkably calm and cooperative during the incident, Vigil observed some become distressed because of rumors and misinformation that circulated during the event.

“I think something the school could do is just giving us more information while things are happening so that there’s not so much gossip and different stories going around, and so that we’re all on the same page about what to do,” she said. 

In their press statement, the Oshkosh Police Department described the continued efforts to preserve the safety of the community and to bring just consequences for the individuals involved in this incident. 

“As a result of the investigation, a juvenile from Oshkosh will be referred to the juvenile justice system on criminal charges of Disorderly Conduct and Restrictions on Use of Facsimile Firearms,” they said.

The incident in November came only one month after West went on secure over a safety concern involving an airsoft rifle at the skatepark across from the school. Although neither of these scenarios led to any threats to the security of students or staff at West, Montour emphasized that it is important each case is carefully handled.
      “There seems to be an uptick in the community of people having facsimile weapons, which are BB guns that look like real firearms,” she said. “They know that it’s not real, but we don’t, so we have to react and take that seriously.”

Nunez stressed the important role that students play in reporting potential safety concerns and keeping the school safe.

“First and foremost, report it to a teacher, report it to a trusted adult, report it to any of the staff walking around,” he said. “If they don't feel comfortable doing it in person, SUSO is a great option. Students have the majority of the eyes in the whole school, with how many there are. They would be helping all of us out, keeping each other safe and keeping themselves safe.”

Despite the two recent incidents, students and staff believe that West is prepared to respond to safety threats and maintain a secure environment. Schellinger recognizes that, if anything, the effective responses to these events have helped prove that the school is prepared to handle future incidents.

“I feel really safe at this school, and I like how people take things seriously and it's not just jokes to other people,” she said.

by Aria Boehler

Published December 2nd, 2024

Oshkosh West Index Volume 121 Issue III