The following message is from North Albany Middle School Principal Andrea Piper:
Dear Families,
I would like to provide you with an update regarding Wednesday’s safety incident, in which a loaded handgun was found in the public playground across the street from North Albany Middle School.
Since our first communication to you Wednesday, we took the following steps at school Thursday morning:
- Staff were invited to attend a voluntary meeting before the start of our school day.
- The District-wide Crisis Team convened to debrief with our Building-level Emergency Response Team.
- Following that meeting, our building-level team met to debrief and discuss next steps.
- Our leadership team, along with Student Support Team members, visited each classroom to:
- Provide concise and precise facts
- Share verified facts about the incident
- Clarify news/details that are untrue
- Answer student questions to the best of our ability
- Discuss how to access support within the school community
- Discuss when to speak with a trusted adult
- Remind students if they see something, say something
- Outdoor recess was paused for the day; our plan is to resume recess Monday.
Virtual meetings scheduled Thursday, Friday
To address families’ questions and concerns, we will host four virtual forums Thursday and Friday via Microsoft Teams. Please use the links below to access each meeting. The content of each meeting will be the same; we are scheduling multiple opportunities to provide as much flexibility as possible for our families to participate.
- Thursday: 4:30-5:15 p.m. - forum link
- Thursday: 6-6:45 p.m. - forum link
- Friday: 8:30-9:15 a.m. - forum link
- Friday: 1:30-2:15 p.m. - forum link
In advance of the forums, you can use this feedback form to send us any questions or comments you have about this matter.
The safety of everyone in our school community, and most especially the safety of our students, is a top priority throughout the City School District of Albany and at North Albany Middle School. You can use this brochure for tips when talking to your child about safety concerns, and for more information about important “See Something, Say Something” practices.
