Valley 7th grader addresses school threats and concerns from students in heartfelt essay
PHOENIX - The Valley has seen several school threats in the past four weeks, causing some schools to go on lockdown.
They are becoming way more common and we're hearing about one almost every other day.
It not only has parents worried, but students are scared too.
One seventh grader, Aria Williams, gave a first-hand perspective on how these recent school shooting threats are impacting students.
"The main part of not feeling safe at school is not because there's just the fights or the bullying, it's because of the school shooting threats. That's the main part of why teens and kids do not feel safe at school," Williams said.
She makes it known in her essay she does not feel safe at school and neither do her friends.
"There was like three shooting threats in one week," Aria recalls about the period when her school was dealing with these threats. That's why she decided to write what she was feeling and she shared it with her parents.
"People have the same feelings about the shooting threats. People get nervous and have big anxiety over the school threats and don't come to school because of it," Aria explains.
Her mother, Stephanie, works at a school and says she can relate to what her daughter and other students may feel.
"It really opens your eyes. These kids are going through way more than what I went through in high school," Stephanie reflects.
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She has trust in her daughter's school district and the police department but, as a parent, she can't help but worry about her daughter's safety at school.
"Once one happens, it seems like all of them happen, and you don't know which one is going to be real and which one is not going to be real. It's sad to get that news on your phone every single day of a new school shooting threat or lockdown," Stephanie shares.
Stephanie is supportive of her daughter sharing the essay to spread awareness.
"We are telling her like, we are here for you, come talk to us. If you feel like something is not going the right way, please communicate it with us," she said.