Protest at Galt

Agroup of students held a demonstration at the front gate of Alexander Galt Regional High School yesterday, reacting to an incident at the school on Tuesday where a student allegedly threatened another student with a knife.

The students, numbering between 60 and 80, chanted “make school safe,” suggesting the school’s response to Tuesday’s knife incident was inadequate. According to media reports, during recess on Tuesday a male student is alleged to have held a knife to the neck of a female student. A nearby teacher intervened before anyone was harmed.

Following the incident, the mother of the alleged victim expressed concerns to media that she felt the school did not recognize the severity of the situation and react appropriately.

According to ETSB Chairman Michael Murray, the situation, the details of which he could not include, was handled properly by the staff at the school. The incident is currently under police investigation.

Murray said the student protest was within the students’ rights, and remained peaceful.

“If they feel strongly enough about something, they should be able to express themselves, and they did,” Murray said.

The next step, according to Murray, will be for school staff and senior administrators to meet with the demonstrators to better understand their concerns and discuss what could be done.

“Before we had two people, now we have a group of people,” Murray said, explaining the demonstration points to a wider problem at the school that should be addressed.