BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — With the recent shooting near Golden Valley High School, along with threats the campus has received, many parents say they’re frustrated.
Several parents have reached out to share how they feel the school needs to do a better job communicating during serious situations.
Alicia Barbosa is the mother of a sophomore student at GVHS, and she says, “There was just so much confusion and so much chaos. I feel like that could've been mitigated with appropriate communication.”
Concerned parents are speaking out after a safety scare at Golden Valley High School. On Wednesday morning, chaos erupted when a man was found shot outside the campus, right near the school. One parent says she only learned about the incident after her child contacted her directly. Others say they learned more from social media and their children than from school.
“A lot of our information is coming from the kids and social media more than it’s coming from the school, and what’s coming from the school is vague. It’s yes, there are threats, yes, we are taking care of it — but not if it is credible or not, has the person been identified, which leaves parents to panic and assume when there’s not adequate and accurate information.” Barbosa said.
The Kern High School District says the victim entered the campus parking lot, triggering a “secure” protocol to keep students and staff inside school grounds. Police responded to the scene, and the victim was transported to the hospital.
School officials emphasize the shooting is not related to recent online threats, which law enforcement continues to investigate. In an email, the district responded, saying they do send out parent information through ParentSquare, also adding in a statement: “Parents were notified at 11:35 a.m. via ParentSquare that GVHS was placed on a secure action. This secure action was lifted approximately 30 minutes later, once authorities confirmed there was no threat to the campus. Parents received an update that the secure action was lifted at 1:03 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon.”
However, some parents are not convinced. They say this is the latest in a series of security concerns, and they’re frustrated by what they describe as delayed and insufficient communication from school officials and want a change. “If they would just communicate and say this is what happened, this is what we are doing, this is what’s going to happen moving forward, I feel like that would put a lot of parents at ease.” Barbosa said.
The school district says the best way to stay up to date is to download ParentSquare for the most current and accurate information.
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