Spotsylvania County Public Schools Superintendent Clint Mitchell normally remains seated when providing comments during school board meetings. On Monday evening, however, he requested to stand at the podium.
Mitchell believed that his posture was important when addressing the community for the first time since enduring the most difficult week of his first year as the school division’s chief.
A third grader at Lee Hill Elementary brought a Taurus 9 mm handgun to school last Monday, and it went off in the classroom, although no one was injured. His parents were charged with felony child endangerment.
The following day, a triple homicide in the Olde Greenwich neighborhood involving current and former SCPS students gripped the community as a manhunt resulted in four arrests.
Mitchell used his window for comments to address concerns from the community about the incidents, encouraging parents to know what’s in their child’s backpack and thanking the sheriff’s office for its handling of the mass shooting that also left three wounded.
“I want to make sure that for our parents, that you hold yourself accountable, because how is it that we have a third-grade student bring a gun to school, and you as a parent, don’t know what’s in the backpack?” Mitchell said. “Yes, you can provide a suggestion of clear backpacks, but that’s just a piece of the solution. It starts at home … We are going to do our job in school to keep them safe, but we want you to do yours at home.”
Mitchell noted that the Olde Greenwich shooting impacted multiple localities in the Fredericksburg region. Two of the alleged perpetrators are Caroline High School students. Mitchell said the superintendents in Planning District 16 — which includes Caroline, Fredericksburg, King George, Spotsylvania and Stafford — will meet Thursday to seek solutions to teen violence.
“We’re going to meet here to talk about it, about what we can do as leaders in this area to keep our students safe, because they go from one school to another,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell’s comments came during a tense meeting. While he was speaking, spectators mocked him with facial expressions and other gestures.
“We were doing all that foolishness behind Clint because you guys want to talk about it, but y’all don’t do anything about it,” public speaker Carla Milsap said to the board. “Why would we respect somebody because he does not listen to the concerns of the public and the parents?”
Mitchell wasn’t only mocked when providing comments.
Public speaker Shamgar Connors made light of Mitchell’s claims of racism that he said he’s experienced since taking over last Aug. 1, calling the accusations “magic” and “mystical.” Spotsylvania NAACP President Moe Petway said he did not plan to speak but wanted to address Connors’ remarks, describing them as “unacceptable.”
“I think I would be remiss not to say something about the racist tone that was set a few moments ago by this gentleman,” Petway said. “I think it was an insult for you to disrespect an individual who has many years of experience, has proven that he is a professional in doing his job in making efforts to change Spotsylvania County. This is what racism looks like … So, Dr. Mitchell, I ask you sir, to keep doing what you’re doing.”
A five-minute recess was called after public speaker Sarah Alley accused board members April Gillespie of the Berkeley District and Lisa Phelps of the Lee Hill District of smirking during Mitchell’s comments and not taking the incidents seriously. The speaker questioned why two mothers would appear to make light of the deaths of young adults. Two of the deceased victims were 18, and the third was 19.
“My friend’s kid is in a casket,” Alley said after Phelps fired back that it is inappropriate to bring her children or parenting into the discussion.
“I attacked you and your ability to be their mother because you find it funny when other children are murdered,” Alley added.
Mitchell said school safety remains a priority in the division. He highlighted several initiatives, including weapon detector systems in seven school buildings including all five high schools, the Spotsylvania Career and Technical Center and the John J. Wright Education and Cultural Center.
According to the superintendent, all 29 schools have secure entry, an anonymous tip line was established, and safety officers are in place at all middle schools in addition to school resource officers.
“Are we perfect? No,” Mitchell said. “But are we taking the steps to get there? We are. And when the system fails us, all we can do is learn from it. We’ll continue to look at our processes and find ways to be better.”
Mitchell asked all parents to secure their weapons at home, and all students to report anything suspicious that they see or hear to an adult. He thanked the teacher who evacuated 26 students from the classroom for her handling of the incident. He also praised the students, administration, staff and the school resource officer for their awareness.
“I also want to thank the parents of the Lee Hill community for their collaboration with the school and the school staff, to ensure that we could execute our safety protocols swiftly and orderly,” Mitchell said.
