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Ernest Ward Middle Placed On Lockdown Due To ‘Suspicious’ Item
October 12, 2010
Ernest Ward Middle School was placed on lockdown Tuesday afternoon after suspicions were aroused by an item found in the cafeteria.
“Because of our desire to provide a safe and wholesome learning environment, the school was placed on lockdown,” said Norm Ross, deputy superintendent. The item was not a weapon of any kind, drug related, or a specific threat, according to Ross. “It’s not something we want to get into,” he said.
The school and students were searched as a precaution, he said. “We found absolutely nothing,” Ross said, “in a school of over 500 students.”
Gates to the school were unlocked at 3:40, and parents were allowed to enter the campus for afternoon dismissal. Buses were slightly delayed in leaving campus.
Pictured above: Parents line up outside Ernest Ward Middle School Tuesday afternoon as the gates are opened following a lockdown. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Comments
59 Responses to “Ernest Ward Middle Placed On Lockdown Due To ‘Suspicious’ Item”
ok we went under lock down in 5ht period and stayed there for the rest of the day !! there was 2 officers there and we whent under code yellow !! every one was suppose to stay in there room and quit which means u could move much !! the staff was probbally spending time trying to figure out every thing such as wat the suspicious item was ,was it a threat, was there any students invloved or hurt/dead, and/or wat precautions needed to be taken !! there fore there wasnt many ppl or time to conduct a contectED messeage yes parents were worryyed but u have to trust tht hte princapal and/or S.R.O is takening care of every thing !! in the end every thing was fine !! we a re put on locck down for things such as suspicous item, drugs/substences,ppl,behavior,or so on !! or things such as ppl, weapons, drugs,or anything in tht area !! lock down is usully around the area were somthing is found and u saty in ur class room still and and quite ( depends on the code ) somtimes u can be put on lock down for weather !! no lock downs r not like impriosnment it is for our own safty and of COUSRE u want ur children to be saft !! there is rlly no way to contact parnets when there is no way too !! when usualy most of the staff is under some kind of precautionary measure due to the cause , if there was a way to conmtact parents im SURE the staff would !!!! thank you !!!*:)) ( remeber : lockdown is for the students own safty )
))))))))
If you drop your child off at a public school or put him/her on a bus you are agreeing that the administration at that school is in charge of not only your child’s edudaction but also their safety and wellbeing until they get home. Mrs. Perry has often referred to the students as “her babies” and I believe she makes well thought out decisions to protect each and every one of them. I fully trust the faculty at EWMS. They are experienced educators that really care about our children.
Do you realize the massive panic that connectED would have created? There would have been 300+ parents parked out front of the school!! It would have been complete chaos and would not have contributed anything to safely securing the school which housed you children. If anything it would have made the lockdown unsecure!
I am suppose it would have been something bad…how is bringing you child out of a secure room going to protect them?
>>> By not posting my previous comments confirms my suspicions about your position on free speech. It only applies to you, huh?
Every comment from your assumed named, you email and your IP address has been approved.
By not posting my previous comments confirms my suspicions about your position on free speech. It only applies to you, huh?
I have relatives attending this school. I told the grandparent to send her children somewhere else. I didn’t like the way situations before this woman became principal. I can only guess she’s gotten worse. What knot head came up with this great idea of combiing the schools? As far as Cenntury kids are concerned, I’ve seen a number of students dropping out, or relocating elsewhere.
Remember the good old days, when Century’s biggest rivals were the Flomaton Hurricanes? Now those were the days.
I think sometimes that the police, or authorities, whatever you want to call them, stage these “lock Downs” just to scare the kids and annoy the parents. I know someone will answer with “We have to do whatever is necessary to ensure the children’s safety “, but ever since Columbine we have seen more and more of the “zero tolerance” laws turn schools into virtual prisons. Every school in Escambia County has a fence around it. These schools should be the safest places in the county. How are they constantly being under lock down? Also look at the choice of words. The term “lock down” is what you do to a prison when the inmates riot. Schools should not be prisons.
this is absolutely the most surreal, bizarre and strange news i’ve read in a long time. makes me wonder what is going on? was this some kind of drill? makes sense to me. it was totally random. and unlike nice little well planned fire drills that occur during the school day, this involved all the parents that were coming to pick up their lil precious bundles of joy thus demonstrating what would happen if indeed there was some type of threat to the children. wonder what everyone will learn from this experience, whatever it was.
Journalism is reporting the facts. Thanks William for giving us facts not rumor. We appreciate you.
>>PLEASE think about the panic you are causing by posting the “Breaking New” with VAGUE information. Maybe you and Mrs. Perry need to determine what and when issues should be posted.
I’ll respond this one with a story. I covered a fire safety drill at Flomaton Elementary School once. The drill involved fire trucks arriving with lights and sirens for realism.
Literally within minutes my Blackberry email began to fill up as I stood there watching the fire drill. The messages were about a shooting at Flomaton Elementary. Then emails began to arrive about a shooting at Bratt Elementary, which was miles away peacefully not involved in the drill.
The rumor mill is an ugly animal and that day serves as a perfect example of why we will cover a lockdown in “real time” at our schools. Vague information that says everyone is OK is far better than us doing nothing.
We were able to update parents that school would be dismissed on time, to post “live” as the gates were being unlocked for the parent pickup line, and even let parents know that buses had left the campus just a few minutes late. All with with the purpose of providing fact within the rumors that were flying, and serving to reassure parents.
I wish I could share the “rumor mill” emails and Facebook messages that I received yesterday. Imaginations can run wild in most horrible way. We try to be the calm in that storm.
–William
Wake up people! Remember the lock downs are for the safety of the kids. What ever it was had to been a threat to the students so therefore —-lock-down. The students knew they were being searched for “something”. I believe the students were more upset knowing that someone had something that could hurt them than being upset about being searched. The search did not cause any bodily harm. They did search each student! It is wiser to be safe than for your child to be killed or bodily harmed. Just think if it had been a gun and they didn’t lock down the school. Would you be saying, Why didn’t they lock-down the school to protect my child?”
Now that it is over, I do believe it is a parents and students right to know what they were seaching for.
Thank God that my grandchild was protected.
Grandmother of a EWMS student
Mom on October 13th 2010 -
I agree! I tried to demand answers of what was going on in a school that had my child. The school did not answer the phone probably because they were inundated with “panic” parents. I also called the Superintendent’s Office at the School District and their response was just as William posted in his “Breaking News” on this website.
My son is respectful, very well mannered and has read and tested on the Rights and Responsibilities so he was not about to break the rules and therefore didn’t have his phone on! I had NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON NOR THE SAFETY OF MY CHILD which is not acceptable.
wannabe sherlock holmes on October 13th, 2010-
I am sure this will happen again as this is the 2nd time in less than a year that EWMS has been on LOCK DOWN. ——–The Escambia County School District has a tool called “ConnectEd” which is used at the judgment of the Principal to notify parents/guardians. ConnectEd is one recording and takes one phone call for the Principal or who ever to make. This takes just a few minutes and is sent to every phone number associated with each child enrolled in that school or in the District. This is used for advising of PTA and SAC Meetings, Open House, School Shots, etc. This could have been utilized yesterday to take the pandemonium off of the parents/guardians. Therefore, we do not need to do the math!
—————————————
Connect Ed was used last night AFTER THE FACT to “Thank Everyone!” This was nice, but useless! Mrs. Perry should have used or had someone on her staff use ConnectEd as a curiosity to curtail the worries of all the parents or guardians.
I do believe that Mrs. Perry takes every precaution for the betterment of the students. However, I am the parent and not knowing what is going on is not acceptable.
Willam, I love NORTHESCAMBIA.COM! I hit your site before the News Journal or WEAR TV and I have heard WEAR TV reference or even use your information, but PLEASE think about the panic you are causing by posting the “Breaking New” with VAGUE information. Maybe you and Mrs. Perry need to determine what and when issues should be posted.
ACTTUUUAALLLY. To “Wannabe Sherlock Holmes”
dat’ a big fone bill.
There is more than one phone per school. Actually, at Ernest Ward Middle School. There are approxomiately 18 phones. 3 minutes for 500 students, on 18 phones only taking 20 hours.
For all the parents out there that think lockdowns are so bad and your child’s rights have been taken away…maybe you need to go and sit with your child for the entire school year. Schools and children are NOT the same as they used to be. Schools have procedures in place that have to be followed in certain events. I totally agree with those who say the parents should have been informed about the situation and all the details, however, those who are going off because of a safety procedure really need to sit down and think about what they are saying. If your child was hurt because someone brought a gun or knife to school and the administration had heard a “rumor” that there was such a weapon on campus but did nothing to check it out, you would be the first people suing the school district because they didn’t “do enough” to keep your child safe. This isn’t the school or the children of the 50s anymore. Also, students check some of their rights at the schoolhouse door so that the good of the group as a whole can be protected. If I have to agree to random searches with probable cause in order to keep my child safe from harm you better believe I’m signing on the dotted line.
Another reason why I am planning on homeschooling my children. The way I see it, I am the one who went through 24 plus hours of hard labor with my two; I am the one who is in charge of them. I would be furious in this situation. If my children were in that school, I would demand to know what this item was. It’s sad that parents who actually parent their children have no right to know what is going on at school.
Some believe the parents should have been notified. Lets say that each call to the parents would take 3 minutes each. That’s 20 per hour. If one person was doing this it would take 25 hours to contact 500 parents. If we divide the three hours for the shutdown into the 25 hours then it would take 8 people to perform this task within that time frame. This would have prolonged the shutdown process if you tied up 8 personal for this task. Lets do the math before we point the cannon at the staff.
Remember these figures if this happens again.
I recently had a serious problem at this school concerning my grandson. What happened to innocent until proven guilty? It has been horrible for him and the family. He asked for a lie detector test to prove his innocence. So far we have been unable to obtain one. It’s not over yet!
ALL kids are required to read the Rights & Responsibilities Handbook at beginning of the school year, mine even had quizes on it. *ALL* PARENTS* need to read it as well, it is clearly in there~ that anything brought on school premises can be searched!
I haven’t read all of the comments on here so I apologize in advance if I offend someone…that is not my intention.
I agree with concerned parent that I believe Mrs. Perry and the staff of EWMS do all they can to provide safety to our children.
I had two children that attended EWMS and yes, they two went through a lockdown situation at the school. During the 2 lockdowns that they went through we too were not told anything about what was going on other than there was a situation and they were doing their best to ensure our childrens safety. When it was all said and done, my husband and I did two things….1. We talked to our children. 2. We called the school. We were given the information we seeked from the staff at EWMS immediately upon placing the call and were able to set down with our children again and discuss the importance of what had happened and why the lockdown was necessary. I would suggest to all of these parents who want to know to do the same. It is not helping anyone, let alone yourselves, by bashing Mrs. Perry and her staff. I certainly don’t know the rules as far as releasing information from the school, but did you ever consider that while protocol stated they had to do a lockdown it may also state that “releasing certain information” about the lockdown is forbidden or not advised until the suspicion has been confirmed or that the staff was so concerned about your childs safety that their first priority was just that….Keeping them safe. In a nutshell, please consider what you may do if you were in this situation and had to make “immediate” decisions on how to keep approx. 500 kids safe and make sure they were returned to their parents. I think Mrs. Perry and her staff deserve our respect and consideration for the job they do.
Wake up parents, children are not perfect they will do things
behind our backs you never know what your child will do when they are not around you. U have 500 or more kids
in a school.You know as well as I do its better to be Safe then Sorry I think it was handled the best way to protect my children. Mrs. Perry is only trying to keep our children safe. Thank you Mrs. Perry and staff keep doing everything you can to keep our children safe.
@ AL~Amen!!!
Even though I worry when I hear the school is in lock-down, I do have some relief knowing Mrs Perry does all in her power to keep all the kids safe! Thanks again Mrs Perry & the rest of the EWMS staff too!
I know Mrs Perry, and she is a good lady and prinicple, but isnt what happened JUST LIKE false imprisonment? My child said she was searched with a wand…but there was no threat to any students.Granted it has been over 20 years since I went to school,but this sounds like a bunch of junk to me, at least come clean and tell us what is important enough to lock the school down.
Well, I posted what my son said they found, but I guess they wouldn’t post it here since I did not see my post. I also said I wasn’t sure if it was true what they found or not, but I guess they don’t want things be spread about in case I was wrong.
AMEN! CONCERENED!!
I’m sure they would not have shut the school down without good reason. If my child went there and was brought up to the front of the class and searched, then they must have had probable cause to do so. I believe the faculty and staff have the best interest of all the children in mind at all times. A little more info to the parents would have gone a long way to calm everyones’ nerves though. Thanks to Wiliam for the breaking news!
As I am up getting breakfast for my elementary schooler and waiting to get my middle schoolers up I decided to comment again. First of all every single student was searched in the whole school according to my kids. If every kid was taken into the hallway, then your kids would not have gotten home until 7:00 or later. I prefer the “everyone.” Second, your husband or wife, mother or father, older child out working, going to college, at the bank, or shopping has a lock down and it is all over the news. I bet if you called they would not tell you anything. Yes I would like to have known what was going on but the decision was made and I as an adult will show my children you respect the law and the place you may happen to be. I know only 30 or so responded here and I know you are upset but the decision was made for the safety of our kids. Maybe it was a true false alarm and since nothing was found why give other kids ideas??? Just saying and thinking.
mrs perry needs to take a dose of reality. she does not own our children!!! ill bet if you know any good lawyer they can check the laws regarding enforcement and allowing parents to know what is going on in the school. come on. we are parents we are not babies we can handle knowing what was found. we have the right to know . we have civil liberties and rights. it is the law. and as to another issue of not allowing the parent to be with their child while being questioned by the police that is totally against the law and violates his rights. if mrs perry cant follow the laws maybe we need to make a total administration change up in that school. escambia school district has done it. they removed all the administration and most teachers of a school. does the school board know of this lockdown? we are not in a concentration camp this is a school
For all the so called parents posting on here about how the school handles delicate and potential safety situations like yesterday, take a deep breath and count to ten before you all start bashing the school’s staff about how this went down.
Here’s a question for the parents who think that their rights have some how been violated with some illegal search, have you read your child’s rights and responsibility handbook? I’m sure somewhere in my student’s handbook, I read in there that the school has not only the right to search students and personal items but the school also has an obligation to me as a parent and to my student to search when it comes to the overall safety of EWMS.
I say keep up the good work Mrs. Perry in your efforts to keep EWMS safe for all of our students!
my child did not mention being searched(will ask him when he gets up) IF they were on “Lockdown” for 3 hrs then some of the school’s staff should have started making phone calls to alert the parents….AS MINORS they have the right to have a parent present when thier kids are involved..but to search every kid in school is not right again w/o parents consent..if the dogs didnt smell something on a student then they should have just moved on until a dog found something…We see comercials daily (even from OBAMA) about staying in touch w/ your kids about school..How can we do that if we are not informed from the school?? I thought this was a PUBLIC school..they need to tell us what happened so that we as parents can talk to our children about it!! NOT a HAPPY CAMPER..
North Esc Tax Payer wrote: Hmmm since they won’t say what they were looking for…maybe it’s the missing computers from the other school LOL! Just couldn’t redist!
I guess it could have mouse tracks they found in the cafeteria?
Your daughter should have at least been taken into the hall and searched without being stared at by her peers. Lots of kids are like their parents love to lie and run their mouth always stirring up trouble and sadly the ones who pay are the innocent. And its a load of CRAP that they can’t tell parents what is going on remember who makes the ignorant statements when you vote we need elected officials across the board who are for students and their rights and parents rights all the way to the top. Starts with governors to school board members. I wish I could home school my youngest. But I suppose this teaches them early guilty till found innocent and no rights. Because it doesn’t get better later in life its all the same.
As a parent I can tell u first hand when it comes to your child when they are at school you have no rights to them. I was called one day to be told my child had done something but wouldn’t tell me what. My child told me the WRONG AND STUPID thing that had taken place so the next morning my child went on to school as normal and I went in to speak with mrs weaver to find out punishment. Then I’m told my child will be arrested so I said I wanted to check my child out I was told NO and an officer came out with weaver and I was livid granted my child did wrong all I wanted was to protect his rights get a lawyer and go to police station it wasn’t nothing violent and didn’t hurt anyone I was not even allowed to be in there while they questioned my child. It didn’t put the school in lock down but it sure opened my eyes to the fact that they the students or parents have no rights on school property. I do not approve of what my kid did but it should NOT have been handled the way it was. Our school,legal system is so screwed up. Welcome to the next generation of being told u have rights to find out you really have very few.
Hmmm since they won’t say what they were looking for…maybe it’s the missing computers from the other school LOL! Just couldn’t redist!
I wasn’t gonna post anything but i felt like it. So in 5th period about half way through they just said something on the intercom, and made us stay in our 5th period classes until the end of the day which was about 3:53. Which is 15 minutes late from our regular time. They searched us and everything, it was really scary.
I was gonna leave this one alone but I think a lot of people here at least need a clue as to what the item could have been. Since all the kids were searched, this tells us it was an item small enough to be carried on person. The fact that they didn’t want to talk about the item leads me to believe it was an unmentionable personal item possibly having to do with birds or bees or something like that.
I agree with all the irate parents who have posted. I hope to see a lawsuit filed if the truth about this event is not spelled out. The statement “It’s not something we want to get into” is elitist, arrogant and unprofessional. Sounds like it’s sex related or national security stuff. Spill it.
Ok so they can’t tell the parents what it was? or are they worried about public image when everyone finds out what nonsense it was closed down for.
When information is with held, something is wrong
It is instances just like these as to why I now homeschool my kids. Good luck with finding out what happened. Parents no longer have any rights where the school system is concerned.
If it were suspicious enough to lock down the school then it is pertinent enough to let parents know what happened. Kids belong to their parents not the state.
The item was not a weapon of any kind, drug related, or a specific threat, according to Ross. “It’s not something we want to get into,” he said.
What could have been so bad to cause a school to go on lockdown for hours? If it was not a threat to the children…….then why? I personally feel that parents of the children that go to this school, have the right to know that answer.
Sheree- it is better for kids to be a little uncomfortable than for one to be allowed to sit in class with a gun while officials wait for parents. No search warrant is needed if there is probable cause – which if someone said a student had a weapon … BINGO there is your probable cause.
Homeschooling is increasing in popularity not because of “lockdowns”, but because of bullies, school shootings and drug riots. My vote is for lockdowns and searches anyday.
this is so ridiculous, is that all people are worried with around there is making up rumors about “suspicious” things. and then whenever people ask whats going on nobody can give them a story, or they give them just what they heard (and its a LIE). this is stupid!
I am so angry about this incident I could spit. My 11 year old daughter was placed in front of the class and scanned with a metal scanner like a criminal!! A police dog was in the room while her purse, notebooks were searched. Are we living in a communist country where searches are executed with which bogus rumors without a search warrant or even a call to the parents beforehand to notify the situation. Im beginning to understand why so many children are being homeschooled these days. Our civil rights are ignored by school official!
Any place that can be “locked down” I would consider to be a prison of sorts. All this rhetoric about safety and protection of the children is just a smoke screen. In the eyes of government, parents are nothing more than human resource donors.
as parents of kids in that school..we do have the right to know what is going on..weather the school officials agree or not…NOW WHAT WAS FOUND?????
I am so thankful the school staff takes the kids’ safety as serious as they do~ THANK YOU! And thank you William for keeping us updated on what goes on!
It would be nice tho, (as a parent), to be let known what actually happened…would be lots better than all the worring thoughts that can go through a parent’s mind when they hear their child’s school is in lockdown; especially when rumors start spreading among the kids and then repeated when they get home.
/
well,we had to stay in 5th period till the bell rung then i still didint know what was going on till someone told me
I am usually one of th first parents to arrive at the school to pick up my child.. I called the school at 315 to see when they were going to open the gates and I was told between 330 and 340, I asked why and was told they could not tell me.. WHAT???????? my child goes there and I have a right to know what is going on and if they are safe.. Then they gates got open and still not kids.. I called back and asked why it was taking so long for the kids to come out and was told that the school was on lock down and I asked for what and they said it was nothing to be concerned about. AGAIN WHAT??????????? I was told by my child that they sat in class for 3 hours… I totally believe that there should have been phone calls made.. I am very upset at EWMS….. Not for the lockdown to make sure that all the children are safe, but for no calls being made….
“”Because of our desire to provide a safe and wholesome learning environment, the school was placed on lockdown,” said Norm Ross, deputy superintendent. The item was not a weapon of any kind, drug related, or a specific threat, according to Ross. “It’s not something we want to get into,” he said.”" AGAIN WHAT???????????????
ok, i just got a phone call about what happened..but nothing stating what happened…. ONLY WHAT 3 HOURS LATER…
Well my children said once again Mrs. Perry is looking out for her babies and not taking any chances. Even is she does not see something but hears something she is going to investigate it….My faith lies in the facutly and staff at EWMS!!
“The item was not a weapon of any kind, drug related, or a specific threat,”
What’s left that would warrant shutting down a school???
I agree with Kevin, anything that makes the school go on lockdown should be made known to the parents of what that “suspicious” item was!!!!!
Frustrated Parent:
If you just left the gates, I hope you weren’t “TEXTING WHILE DRIVING”
“It’s not something we want to get into,” That statement falls very short, I believe we have the right to know what was that suspicious!
I have 2 children at Ernest Ward, I have heard nothing about this until now. I think the school needs to have better communication with parents, these are our children…
Well that’s not good news…
That being said, I have tons of respect and faith that the Staff and Sheriffs Office up at EWMS is doing everything they can in keeping our kids safe, with every precaution being implemented.
all though the schools do not allow cel phones this is why my child carries a cell phone at all time it stays off during school unless some thing like this happens so he can call me to let me know he is ok ( my child attends Pine Forest) but he is only a freshman he has had a phone now for 3 years
Will the kids get on the bus at normal scheduled times?
Please give more info – so worried about my children. Even though they are on lockdown I wonder if we can still pick them up at the appropriate time? Praying all is safe
I JUST LEFT THE GATES OF THE SCHOOL, COULD NOT GET IN TO GET MY CHILD OUT FOR MEDICAL REASONS THAT I TOOK OFF TODAY FROM WORK TO HAVE DONE ! I AGREE WITH THE SCHOOLS RULES AND ADMINISTATION IN THE BEST INTEREST AND SAFETY OF OUR KIDS BUT THIS STINKS !! ALSO I TALKED TO MY SISTER TODAY AROUND NOON AND SHE TOLD ME HER KIDS SCHOOL IN EXCEL ALABAMA WAS ALSO LOCKED DOWN. ITS BAD TO BE A PARENT AND NOT KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON WITH YOUR CHILD WHERE THEY ARE AT AND NOT BE ABLE TO GET TO THEM ! GUESS WE WILL EVENTUALLY KNOW BUT WHAT PARENT WANTS TO WAIT TO KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON WHEN IT COMES TO SAFETY OF YOUR CHILD.
please keep us posted..you do such a great job..