About 100 Central Middle School students gathered around the school flagpole for 17 minutes at noon Wednesday, showing their support for victims and survivors of the Feb. 14 shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
The length of the protest was one minute for each of the 17 students or teachers killed by a gunman at the Florida school, said Larry Perkinson, employee and student assistance coordinator for the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp.
Students in cities across the nation have been showing their support for Florida students requesting action that might prevent similar tragedies from occurring.
Central, one of two middle schools in Columbus, has an enrollment of about 800 students in grades 7 and 8, which means one out of eight students at the school participated.
Central principal Randy Gratz and assistant principal Blake Manuel notified parents of Central students about the peaceful protest on the school grounds at 725 Seventh St.
According to the email to parents, sent shortly after 1 p.m. Wednesday, “CMS teachers and counselors spoke to all of the classrooms about the effects of such actions and encouraged students to meet and discuss with school administrators in preparation for the national ‘walk-out’ planned for sometime in April. It was also discussed that such actions are typically more effective when executed on a larger scale like the national event scheduled for April.”
Central Middle School staff members were outside with the students during the noon protest to make sure everyone acted responsibly, the email from Gratz and Manuel said. At the conclusion of the 17-minute protest, Central students made their way back to classes, the email said.
“This is a positive reminder to all of us the importance of engaging in meaningful and respectful conversations around issues that our society faces. Please know that Central will continue to use situations like this as learning opportunities for our students. As always, the safety, coupled with the education of our students, is our primary concern,” Gratz and Manuel wrote.
BCSC administrators learned of the planned protest Wednesday morning as Central students were talking about it, Perkinson said.
At Perkinson’s recommendation, Central administrators suggested that students pick a different time for the protest — not on a rainy day during the flu season, he said. Counselors shared that message during morning meetings Wednesday as they went room-to-room, talking about the situation, Perkinson said.
The district did not attempt to prevent Central students from going forward on Wednesday, however, he said.
“This was a morning of conversation about talking to kids about how to best use their voice and how to best honor these students (in Florida) and their mission,” Perkinson said Wednesday.
