Following the stabbing of a student at Odessa High School Wednesday, little information is available.
A news release Wednesday detailed that two boys agreed to a fight, near the end of the school day. The student who was stabbed was transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries, the other is being sought. Other students and staff members at the school were not threatened.
Chief Communications Officer Mike Adkins said via email he did not have an update on the student who was stabbed. Legally, he said, the district cannot give out health information about a student unless the family gives them permission.
Adkins wrote that the police investigation is still ongoing and what happens next will be determined by the outcome of the investigation. No arrests have been made, he said.
School district officials cannot talk about specific disciplinary action taken against an individual student. The student will not be back at school, Adkins wrote.
Asked how this could happen when protocols have been put in place after the school shooting in Uvalde, Adkins said, “Unfortunately, when children agree to fight they do it away from the adults on campus. The only way to stop it is to know about it ahead of time, and sometimes we do receive tips that help prevent fights. The school’s police officers and staff members responded to the fight very quickly and followed all guidelines in place to ensure safety of students and staff in time after it took place.”
In the news release issued Wednesday evening, ECISD said school leaders want to assure parents this behavior is unacceptable and they will take extra precautions as classes resumed Thursday. Students are urged to alert an adult on campus if they see or hear anything out of the ordinary or trouble between students, the release said.
The safety of students and staff members is top priority at Odessa High School and in all ECISD schools. Police lauded OHS staff members for following response protocols that helped ensure dismissal was orderly and safe as school ended and classes released for the day, the release stated.
