RICHMOND, Va. -- The shooting of a 25-year-old teacher inside a Virginia elementary school on Friday has sent shockwaves through school communities across Central Virginia.
On Monday, authorities in Newport News confirmed a six-year-old student used his mother's legally purchased gun to shoot a teacher at Richneck Elementary School. Police identified the teacher as Abby Zwerner, who remains in stable condition.
Following the incident, local and state leaders were left with questions as to how something like this could happen and what can be done to prevent a similar tragedy in the future.
"In the last decade, we've had a lot of conversations around school safety and around guns in schools," said Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg. "This just put an awful face on all of that conversation where people are increasingly feeling that schools aren't safe because people have this ready access to guns."
VanValkenburg, a teacher and democratic state lawmaker who represents Henrico County, said a part of the problem is that children have easy access to guns.
"We know that Virginia has particularly weak laws when it comes to safe storage, and the fact that a six-year-old can get access to a gun, can bring it to school, and can purposefully shoot a teacher, nobody wants that," said Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg.
During this year's General Assembly, which is set to begin Wednesday, VanValkenburg will propose a new law that would introduce stricter accountability for those who fail to safely secure their firearms.
VanValkenburg said most consequences would come in the form of misdemeanor charges, but the charges would vary depending on circumstances.
"In extreme cases, if you don't properly store a gun, and you know that there's a child who has been charged with a violent crime, it can escalate up to a felony," he said. "If people have a right to go buy a gun, there's a process by which to do that. There should also be a process by which you have to store a weapon, particularly when there's other people around. Because time and time again, we are seeing that weapons are falling into the hands of children and into just other people who shouldn't have them."
Another democratic state lawmaker, Senator David Marsden, who represents parts of Northern Virginia, said he's also proposing legislation to curb access to guns.
Marsden wants to crack down on people who leave their guns in unlocked cars with a $500 fine.
"There's been a big change in the way guns are getting into the wrong hands. It used to be that three-quarters of guns that were stolen, were stolen out of homes. Now we're finding that it's only half. It used to be one-quarter stolen from cars, and now that's up to a half," Marsden said.
House Republicans said they wanted more information about the circumstances leading up to the Richneck shooting before discussing legislative action.
"I've never been one to jump out in front of something before I knew all the facts, or at least enough to make an educated determination about what I think unfolded," said Speaker of the House Todd Gilbert.
The elected officials who govern local schools are also weighing in on potential solutions.
Henrico County School Board Chair Marcie Shea said the board was devastated by the shooting and that the school division will continue evaluating "multiple tiers of school security." But she added they'll need help from outside partners.
"This incident continues to highlight the community nature of schools. Our schools are a microcosm of our community and all school divisions, including Henrico, need the support of families, community partners, religious organizations, legislators of all levels, all hands on deck, to ensure the safest environment in our schools," Shea said.
In Richmond, School Board Member Jonathan Young said he believed pandemic-induced school shutdowns left children traumatized and that schools were not equipped with mental health supports when students returned.
"Persons are experiencing a mental health crisis in a way arguably like never before," Young said. "Where we're at as a people is wrong, and it's broken, and it's not working."
He said the city's school board has only "compounded the problem" by not addressing what he believes is the excessive cell phone and internet usage in schools.
Additionally, Young said the board should continue investing in community groups that help the district address student trauma and wants teachers to "not turn a blind eye" to students who are in need.
"Our teachers and our folks in the school are on the front line of identifying if there is trauma in a young person's household, so we're going to continue to scale our initiatives in Richmond Public Schools," Young said.
Mental health challenges can be seen statewide. A recent report by JLARC, a nonpartisan group that provides oversight and analysis of state agencies, found that mental health issues among students are "concerning prevalent" following the pandemic. JLARC's study found at least half of middle school students and 64% of high school students reported feeling nervous or anxious.
VanValkenburg said Virginia doesn't have enough counselors or psychologists in schools to meet the need.
"You have a teacher whose core focus is on academics, and of course, they can help, but it's these kinds of other people who wrap around the whole child that we really need to get in the schools and in a real way," he said. "For instance, if your school counselor ratio is one counselor for every 375 Children, you can't do an adequate job. You just can't. Your caseload is too big."
He said it's an issue lawmakers should focus on this session.
CBS 6 reached out to local districts to ask about safety measures in light of the Richneck shooting. Here's how Richmond, Henrico, Chesterfield, and Hanover responded:
RICHMOND:
As a division, we certainly join Newport News in grieving this tragedy and offer our condolences to their community as they heal from this incident.
RPS remains grounded in our dedicated Trauma Responsive Social Emotional work for students, staff and families across all grade levels and continues to be proactive in fortifying our students with positive mental health support. With regard to responding to specific tragic events:
- We provide general guidance on how to talk with students/children when facing issues of violence or other tragedies (document from National Association of School Psychologists attached)
- RPS provides, after any crisis, tools to support children including prompts for community building circles, de-escalation strategies
- School-based Mental Health Support teams are available to conduct small groups and individual support for students who need to process events as these at a deeper level - especially given the fact that tragic events often trigger emotional responses in students due to other
- RPS works collaboratively with community partners (RBHA, ChildSavers, and CIS) to provide intensive mental health support to students.
- RPS encourages all students, staff and families to report any safety or mental health concern using the SpeakUp reporting system (804-655-5585, speakup@rvaschools.net)
- RPS has school-based and division-level threat assessment teams trained to respond to children who may exhibit concerning behaviors, this includes a collaboration with RPD if needed
- RPS school-based and division teams also monitor online behaviors via the use of Gaggle.
- Community partners (SCAN) and CIGNA -EAP are available to support staff who may have struggles.
- We would also like to share two resources regarding safe weapon storage, here are two sites with great resources.
HENRICO:
As a school division, safety and security are the highest priority. Henrico County Public Schools has many, layered safety measures in place, including school resources officers and HCPS safety officers, security cameras, access control systems, buzz-in vestibule entryways, threat assessment and crisis response teams, and other resources that are not shared publicly for security reasons. Staff receives training, and safety drills are practiced with students. Recently, the division partnered with police for more frequent school sweeps by specially trained police K-9 units across the county. At the same time, the school division’s office of emergency management is developing plans to field test metal detectors on school campuses.
The school division has an outstanding team of school counselors who are available to speak with students or adults who are having difficulty processing their feelings or anxiety. Additionally, we can help connect families with community resources for support.
CHESTERFIELD:
School safety is always our top priority in Chesterfield County Public Schools, and schools remain on alert year-round. We are committed to work and learning environments that support our diverse community and promote academic and social growth. Our students and staff members cannot achieve their best unless they feel secure, comfortable and supported.
Within Chesterfield County Public Schools, safety measures include:
Social and emotional counseling that helps students develop an understanding of themselves and others and how their choices affect themselves and others. Students learn how to resolve conflict constructively.
Mental health support that is preventive and responsive and focuses on partnering with students, families, educators and community resources to maximize student safety and adjustment. The CCPS Mental Health Support Services team includes mental health support specialists who collaborate with school-based personnel to provide training to educators about signs of psychological distress and how to assess threats of harm to self or others.
While youth may show spontaneous aggressive behavior or signs of difficulty fitting in, parents should become concerned when alienation or antisocial behavior is shown over a period of time. Parents can seek help from their child’s school by contacting a school counselor, school social worker or school psychologist. Additional help is available from Chesterfield County Mental Health Support Services at 804-748-1227. To anonymously report suspicious behavior or other concerns, parents and students may call Crime Solvers at 804-748-0660.
Each Chesterfield County school has a threat assessment team trained through evidence-based practices to evaluate potential disturbances and respond appropriately. Each school also has a team trained to respond to issues affecting students and staff members in connection with the critical incident and emergency response management plan.
Here are additional ways Chesterfield County Public Schools maintains a safe, supportive and nurturing learning environment:
- Collaborating with local law enforcement officials, the county’s mental health team and other community partners to support students and families in need.
- Electronic locking systems are installed at all schools.
- Camera surveillance continues to be upgraded across the division.
- Exceeding state mandates for emergency preparation and safety response drills.
- Addressing student behavior and mental health needs proactively with the implementation of anti-bullying initiatives and positive behavioral interventions and supports.
- Supporting students through school counseling and other easy-to-access school services such as conflict resolution and team building.
- Working with the police department to assign school resource officers to each secondary school and child safety officers to each elementary school, while also assigning school security officers to each high school and career and technical center.
- Employing caring teachers and staff members who develop meaningful relationships with every student.
HANOVER:
We are shocked and saddened by the unimaginable events that unfolded at Richneck Elementary School last week, and our hearts go out to the teacher, her family, and the entire Newport News community during this difficult time.
With regard to school safety in Hanover County, we continuously evaluate and update our safety and crisis plans and invest in school safety measures at every school and have for decades, especially since the late 1990s (after Columbine). The safety of our students and staff has been and will always remain our top priority. It is our focus and way of living each and every day in our schools. To that end, we take a very serious and deliberate approach to our school safety and security efforts. As noted, these efforts have been ongoing for decades, specifically post-Columbine in 1999. While, for security reasons, we cannot provide detailed descriptions of our safety and security practices, we have substantive measures in place at every school both seen and unseen. For example, some of the more notable safety and security enhancements that we’ve invested in over the past several years include: installing additional security cameras at our schools, installing a new visitor management system at every school, installing vestibules to control entry into our schools, and upgrading our locking systems, just to name a few.
Dr. Michael Gill, our Superintendent of Schools, shared a message with our community [hcps.us] in May on this subject. I’ve included a portion of it below:
Each day, we work hand-in-hand with the Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, Hanover Fire-EMS, and other community partners to ensure we maintain a high level of preparedness for a wide variety of scenarios. We are grateful for their strong and long-standing support to help keep our schools and community safe. Together, we work promptly to address all concerns that are brought to our attention, no matter how small. In addition, we continuously evaluate and update our safety and crisis plans and invest in school safety measures at every school to further ensure that the unique needs of each campus are met. Finally, we put these plans into action by conducting numerous safety-related drills throughout the year to help ensure a high level of readiness among our students, faculty, and staff.
As always, our school counselors stand ready to assist members of our community who may need support during trying times such as this.
