Good afternoon all!

Thank you so much for signing this petition...I updated the name of the petition, removing Norview High School by name and just broadening it to all Norfolk Public Schools. I think we know that Norview itself is not the only problem... the violence is pervasive throughout Norfolk Schools... middle schools aren't even exempt!

A cursory search of "Norview" on Instagram resulted in several accounts recording fights at Norview MIDDLE School, and searches for "Granby fights", etc. resulted in much more comprehensive images and videos of violence from Norfolk Public Schools. Same for TikTok- there are myriad videos on TikTok cataloguing in real time the violence in our schools, as if it is entertainment.

I attended the School Safety Panel hosted by the Virginia Educator Association a few days ago, and it was disheartening to hear teachers talk about these issues and how their hands are tied through federal programs and legislation.

We owe our kids a better educational environment than this. Districts and even state legislators in other states have tackled crafting very specific and carefully worded legislation to curb school violence, even in cases where students have IEPs or 504 Plans. NO one student's "right to education" is any more important than any other student's "right to education", particularly if one student is being violent and the other student is not.

We are also owed an explanation as to why, after a video was disseminated with a threat of violence towards Norview High School by name, none of the official routes of reporting this worked... none of the "tip lines" went anywhere... and the following day, Norview administrators couldn't be bothered to even put out the metal detectors they already have on the premises. Many students didn't feel safe entering the building, and yet most of them had to weigh what an unexcused absence meant when weighed against their feelings of safety at school.

In the age of school shootings, the response from Norfolk Public Schools AND Norfolk Police Department was subpar, at best, and thoroughly disappointing. It left many parents concerned with how an actual shooting event would be handled at Norview High School. It left a lot of parents with a lot of questions and concerns about Norfolk Public School's policies and how they are written on paper versus how they are actually implemented in real time.

I thank you for joining me in signing this petition, and I encourage you to share, share, share, with as many of your friends and neighbors who have kids in Norfolk Public Schools, or just care about our school children and their learning environments. 

I also highly encourage you to come to the next school board meeting Wednesday, May 17, at 7:00 PM- 800 East City Hall Ave, Rm 1202, and if you'd like to make a public comment, make sure you follow their protocol so your voice can be heard. Please notify the clerk at schoolboard@nps.k12.va.us at least 24 hours before the meeting that you'd like to make a public comment.

Thank you all for your continued support and for signing and sharing!
~Melissa Corrigan