After a week that included three small fires and several arrests, Todd Beamer High School was dealing with rumors of a bomb threat on Friday.
“It’s a lot of rumors but no threat,” district spokeswoman Diane Turner said.
Rumors have circulated on MySpace and on a Komo-4 blog.
TBHS had extra school resource officers on duty Friday, and security cameras have been installed at the school.
“It’s just kids getting out of line,” police spokesman Raymond Bunk said. “There’s nothing to say it’s going to happen.”
Other rumors, including that the fires were gang related, are also false, Turner said.
The fires have all been set in trash cans in bathrooms, according to school district officials. The damage has been minor, but the disruption has brought students out of classes for hours this week as students were evacuated.
Students take a stand
Todd Beamer students have taken it upon themselves to stop the mischief. Handmade signs on each bathroom read “From 7:20 to 2:05, this is our home. For some, it’s all we have. Please don’t take that away.”
A wall downstairs is covered with signs made by students that plea for an end to trouble, with messages that include “I am unhappy that I don’t feel very safe in my school anymore,” “I don’t like fire in the bathroom,” “I think teachers are doing a good job. We caught someone, didn’t we?” and “The fires are a waste of time. They are starting to get really annoying.”
On Friday, a group of students circulated a letter of concern and also addressed the school during morning announcements.
“Our learning environment has been destroyed by this event,” reads one line from the letter. “Students who care about their future don’t have the time for this.”
Todd Beamer principal Liz Drake said the incidents during the past week have a psychological effect, not just with the disruptions to learning, but to a sense of safety. Drake added that the demands and messages sent by students to their peers carry more weight.
“Students listen to students,” Drake said Friday. “We have a culture here where students have a voice.”
