Parents and students urge North Clackamas board to improve threat reporting and transparency

At the Feb. 12 public meeting of the North Clackamas School District board of directors, several parents and a fifth‑grade student told the board they no longer feel safe at district schools and urged changes to how the district documents and communicates safety incidents.

A student, Amelia Ewin of View Acres School, opened the public‑comment period saying she no longer feels safe at school and that fear is interfering with her ability to focus on learning. Parents who followed described repeated incidents they said involved threats and, in some cases, violent behavior.

Carly Atami, a social worker and member of the district’s special education parent advisory committee, said her Asian children have been directly involved in or present for three separate threats involving guns or threats of death and alleged inconsistent incident reporting by staff and paraeducators who lack access to the reporting system. She asked the board to require comprehensive threat‑reporting training for all staff, ensure paraeducators have direct access to the reporting system, provide transparent aggregate data to the board and families, and publicly acknowledge racial elements of incidents when present.

Other parents described similar concerns. Anthony Wynne said parents had to reconstruct a recent incident from a child’s account because they received no timely notification; Lisa Goshow asked the district to follow its own student‑threat process and to use clearer language so families can make informed decisions. Helen Clapp described students who, she said, are destroying property and assaulting others; Michelle Pearl Gee Wen said parents had to escalate publicly to prompt communications and cited a figure she identified for 2025: "233 school shootings or guns on campus." Several speakers stressed they were not seeking to identify students publicly and repeatedly referenced FERPA while also urging clarity about what information can be shared under safety exceptions.

Board members and staff did not make policy changes that night. Chair reminded commenters that detailed, student‑specific information should be submitted to the superintendent’s office in writing when privacy rules prevent open discussion. Speakers asked for the district to publish aggregate counts and categories of threat assessments, to expand reporting access to paraeducators and classified staff, and to institute mandatory training so that patterns can be identified before risk escalates.

No formal board action on threat‑reporting or communications was taken at the meeting; parents asked the board to return with a clear statement of current practice and next steps.

What’s next: Several speakers requested the district provide a formal explanation of NCSD’s threat‑assessment protocols, confirmation of immediate safety actions (without identifying students), and a plan for improved family notification. The board did not set a public follow‑up date during the meeting.