Local
Chariho families press school leaders for clearer notice after welding-class stabbing
Parents told the Chariho School Committee they should not have to learn about a reported classroom stabbing from students or social media. Superintendent Gina Picard said the incident was isolated and posed no wider threat, while acknowledging the district should reevaluate its response.
Parents urged Chariho school leaders to improve communication about serious safety incidents at a School Committee meeting Tuesday, weeks after three students were reportedly stabbed with a metal tool during a welding class at Chariho High School.
The incident occurred Sept. 21. Richmond police referred a 16-year-old Charlestown boy to Family Court on a simple assault charge, though police did not specify whether the referral concerned one reported stabbing or all three.
The district did not send a schoolwide notification, saying the incident did not present a broader threat to students. Superintendent Gina Picard defended that decision after Tuesday’s meeting, saying officials followed committee policies and protocols.
“There was no threat to the larger community. There was an isolated incident in the classroom,” Picard said.
Parents at the meeting questioned why families had not been informed. “There comes a point when staying quiet is no longer acceptable,” said Brooke Shogren, a Hopkinton parent. She asked when parents should be told about a serious school safety incident and what the district’s communication responsibilities are.
A 15-year-old student previously told reporters that a classmate used a center punch, a metal tool used in welding, to stab him in the shoulder after asking whether he could do so. The student said he had repeatedly told the classmate no and later learned two other students had also been stabbed.
Gina Lee, a Chariho teacher of 24 years who spoke as a parent, said families need timely, direct information and should not have to learn critical details secondhand. “We should not have to worry whether our children are safe or why we are hearing critical information secondhand,” she said.
Picard has said district communication policies are shaped by legal counsel and intended to protect student privacy. Asked whether the district should change its approach to similar incidents, she said it should continually review its practices and listen to feedback.
School Committee Chairman Ryan Callahan also expressed dissatisfaction with the handling of the incident and urged the district to reconsider its response. Parents said their concern was not only what happened in the classroom, but also whether families can trust that the district will communicate clearly when student safety is at stake.