FORT SMITH, Ark — Fort Smith Public Schools (FSPS) said a student threatened two staff members with a knife on the morning of Aug. 22 at Ramsey Middle School. The incident was resolved safely by the school district's police department, officials said.
The FSPS Police Department said they got a call at the beginning of the school day that a student was being disruptive. When they arrived to help, they were met with the student holding a kitchen knife.
A school resource officer was able to disarm and take the student into custody without incident or injuries.
In a press release, the school district said the incident occurred outside a classroom and all staff and students were kept safe by a responding officer.
The release states that the student is under arrest while the incident is being investigated according to the district's protocols.
This is the second time a Fort Smith student has been caught with a weapon on campus since school started. A Northside High School student brought a gun to school the previous week.
Lt. Eric Huber with FSPS Police says he believes these are isolated incidents, but school safety is not something they take lightly.
"We're going to go back, we'll look at this and we will speak to the staff and see if there's anything that we can do to make things even safer at our schools than what we're already doing," Huber said.
FSPS has had school resource officers for years, and they're looking at other options like metal detectors, but Huber says they have to consider the logistics.
"A lot of it has to do with manpower, logistics, and how you can deploy those, especially if you have a school that has several entrances," Huber said.
In the meantime, Huber says they're doing everything in their power to keep schools safe.
"We want to encourage our parents to speak to their children about what is right and what is wrong to bring to the school, and what items are prohibited to bring to the school, and to be involved and know what their students are bringing to the school as well," Huber said.
FSPS has a zero-tolerance policy for weapons at school. The school policy says the consequence of bringing a weapon to school is suspension or expulsion.
FSPS Superintendent Dr. Terry Morawski said he applauds the Ramsey staff for collaborating in ensuring the well-being of all individuals on campus.
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