Seymour school officials are turning their attention toward parents in their fight against bomb threats.
Monday, the district used the Connect Ed phone messaging system to send a notice home to parents asking them to reinforce the school message about falsely reporting an incident, like a bomb scare.
Parents who received the message said it indicated that a non-serious bomb scare had occurred at the middle school Monday.
“There’s been three in a row now. Thursday, Friday and today,” said Middle School parent Karen Fusco
Fusco was at the Board of Education meeting Monday with her daughter, Jen, to donate $300 to the Seymour Pink fundraiser.
The way student Jen Fusco sees it, some students at Seymour Middle School and other schools in the Valley may be trying to get time out of class by making bomb scares that often result in building evacuations.
It didn’t work Monday, though. School officials evaluated it as not serious and did not evacuate the building or call police, Fusco said.
Superintendent of Schools MaryAnne Mascolo didn’t mention the scare Monday, only the message to parents.
In an interview before the meeting Mascolo said she would not address the issue at the board meeting because the board members are already kept up to date on all incidents in a series of e‑mails.
She said the message parents should give children is that false reports divert police and emergency responders away from other calls that could actually be serious.
It is a Class D felony, as well, Mascolo said.
“The message asked the parents to reinforce what we have been telling the students,” Mascolo said.
Mascolo said that thee have been no expulsions to date, as a result of the recent rash of bomb scares. She was asked that question because there had reportedly been at least one expulsion hearing earlier in the evening.
There have been nearly a dozen threats at Valley schools since the end of October, including one in Shelton Monday. Six students have been arrested, and Seymour police have two additional warrants to arrest two others.
Two Shelton students have been expelled.
No names have been released because the students have all been minors. Most of the incidents have involved notes found in girls’ bathrooms.
The rash of bombs scares began Oct. 21 at Shelton High School.
