Student Walkout Not Endorsed By Central Bucks Administration

Central Bucks School District Superintendent John Kopicki said in a letter to parents that due to safety concerns, he will not officially endorse a March 14 walkout to protest recent gun violence in schools.

Students from at least six Central Bucks schools have announced plans to participate in the walkout, which is set to coordinate with the National School Walkout day and will mark one month since 17 students were fatally shot at a Florida high school.

Kopicki said he is "very concerned" about putting students in harm's way during the walkout.

At 10 a.m., students across the country leave their classrooms for 17 minutes – one minute for each life taken at the school on Feb. 14, according to organizers. The walkout is being done to advocate for stricter gun laws, according to organizers.

"Exposing our students at an announced date and time is promoting a potentially unsafe situation and placing our students at an unnecessary risk," Kopicki said in the letter to the school community.

RELATED: Central Bucks Students Plan Walkout In Call For Stricter Gun Laws

Central Bucks schools that will be participating, according to event organizers, include: Central Bucks West; Central Bucks East; Central Bucks South; Lenape Middle School; Tamanend Middle School and Tohickon Middle School.

"We need action. Students and allies are organizing the national school walkout to demand Congress pass legislation to keep us safe from gun violence at our schools, on our streets and in our homes and places of worship," according to the nationwide event page.

However, Kopicki noted district administrators do not want to discourage students from speaking out on this issue. "We respect the decisions of those students who choose to participate in the walk out," Kopicki wrote. He said administrators are working with local police departments to ensure safety during the walkouts.

Here is the letter from Dr. Kopicki in its entirety:

As you may be aware, there is a national movement involving a walk out on March 14th, the one-month anniversary of the tragic shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Two of the purposes of the planned walk out are to honor the 17 victims and to call national attention to the need for school safety solutions. I am very concerned about putting our students in harm’s way, and therefore cannot officially endorse this effort.

One of the primary concerns about a coordinated student walkout is security and safety. Exposing our students at an announced date and time is promoting a potentially unsafe situation and placing our students at an unnecessary risk. The focus is, and must remain, on keeping our students safe, and we cannot contradict that goal by promoting an environment that will compromise that priority. We are asking for your support on this decision and asking you to focus on the most important priority that we all share, keeping our children safe.

Our high school administrators have been meeting with student leaders to discuss the students’ desire to have a voice on this issue and work together on how best to achieve this. We do not want to discourage students from speaking out on this issue, and we respect the decisions of those students who choose to participate in the walk out. To be clear, however, participating in any kind of student advocacy on this issue is entirely voluntary. We understand that many students have no intention of participating in a walkout or any other form of advocacy. We will make certain that their opinions are respected as well, and that they feel equally safe during the event. We are working with building administrators and local police departments, who have been extremely supportive of our schools, to do everything we can to ensure the safety of all our students.

We are also working to find ways to address this issue with any of our middle school students who may wish to speak out on this topic. Middle school administrators will continue conversations with their students on this topic. We do not feel this topic is developmentally appropriate for our youngest students at our elementary schools.

We appreciate your patience as we work through these challenging issues and times. We are deeply grateful for the incredible community that supports all of us in the Central Bucks School District and will continue to do everything to make it an even greater school district. Nothing is more important than the safety of our students, teachers, staff and working together to ensure this outcome.