Marysville School District promises student safety, parents call for resignations

Some Marysville School District families are calling for resignations, saying that administrators did not react properly after death threats were made against students.

NAACP Snohomish County calls for action on threats from Marysville students

The families say a student connected to two threats is still in school and shouldn’t be, and that the district has not kept students safe nor protected the learning environment.

A statement from the Marysville School District says it cannot share specific details involving the discipline of students, but did outline the school district’s steps for responding to a hate incident or threat. The school district says they: notify the police, conduct a threat assessment, create a safety plan, assign discipline according to the law, provide services and resources for safety to victims, and then provide services and resources to the perpetrators according to the law.

To meet the safety and educational needs of all students, the district says it has a process in place to continue educating disciplined students through a program outside of school, which includes no contact with other students virtually or in person during class time.

“In recent days, information about incidents against students of color, specifically Black/African American students, was shared publicly in the news, on social media, and through community forums,” the letter from the district reads. “These incidents included online threats made against Black/African American students and confirms the Marysville School District’s recognition and acknowledgment that racism and hate continue to exist in our community. They have further required us to recognize and take responsibility for our own learning related to racism and hate, and commit to strengthening our practices, communication, and training.”

“The safety of each student is a top priority,” the letter continues. “This includes physical, social, and emotional safety. We will strive to do everything in our power to make certain that each student we serve feels safe physically, socially, emotionally, and free from racial or any other forms of discrimination. We are working with student and school leaders to ensure welcoming and safe environments for secondary students when they return for in-person instruction on April 14.”

Read the full letter here.

Following the reports of threats to kill minorities from students in the Marysville School District, threats that included showing a weapon that belongs to a Marysville police officer, the Snohomish County NAACP had pushed for tougher consequences.

Dr. Janice Greene, NAACP Snohomish County president, called for action and a plan to prevent similar incidents in the future, as well as a zero tolerance policy for hate crimes from all local school districts.

The incident is under investigation by the sheriff.

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