NEWTON, Kan. — Officials with Newton USD 373 issued a statement Tuesday afternoon regarding a lockdown situation at Newton High School. The statement reads:
"At approximately 9:50am on 4/12/2022, Newton Police notified us of a report of a student in the parking lot with a gun. The school was placed on lock-in while police secured the perimeter and investigated the situation. Shortly after, a student reported a shooter inside the building near the library. That was inaccurate information at the time, but the appropriate response was to deal with what is considered the greatest level of threat at the moment, which is why the ALICE (Alert Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate) protocols are enacted via announcement.
Police immediately secured the area while the administration enacted ALICE protocol, leading some students to run from the perceived threat. Administration was able to locate the initial report on surveillance cameras, quickly identify the student, and reach out to the administration to ensure that the student and object were secure. Once that occurred, we lifted ALICE alert and enacted our post-crisis protocol.
Extra counselors and social workers are in place for students and staff feeling stress from the event over the coming days. Additionally, there are resources linked in this message for talking to students about violence.
The suspicious person was an area-wide student taking courses on the Newton High School campus. We are addressing the matter from a disciplinary perspective with the students involved. The district cannot comment or provide additional information regarding the disciplinary recourse for the students.
We remain thankful to our law enforcement partners for their swift response and to all students and staff for following protocol. We are once again thankful for how our students responded to this unfortunate incident. The safety of our students and staff remains our top priority.”
-USD 373 and Newton High School administration.
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