• February 12, 2024

    Cottondale Elementary Families,

    I wanted to let you know about a situation that happened at our school today. During dismissal, a resident of the area near our school came into the school office, to inform us of an issue related to our afternoon dismissal traffic. He pressed the buzzer to be let into the school, and the staff in our office let him into the building. After he left, a parent noticed the resident had a firearm on his side. The firearm was not readily visible, and our staff, including myself, never saw it while he was in the school. The individual did not make any type of verbal threat to the safety of our school. However, if our school staff had seen the firearm, the individual would have never been let into the school, and our school would have been placed on lockdown. We are thankful to the parent who called the school immediately, to let us know they saw a firearm on the individual. No firearms are allowed on our school campuses. Our School Resource Officer is involved in this investigation. We will have additional law enforcement officers on our campus tomorrow (Tuesday, February 13), as a measure of extra support and security for our students, faculty, and staff. 

    If you are ever aware of a potential threat to student safety, please contact myself or law enforcement immediately. You may also use our confidential Speak Up for Safety tip line. Speaking up when you are aware of any potential concern is one of the best ways you can support the safety of our schools or help a student in crisis.  

    Email address: speakup@tcss.net

    Call or text: (659) 734-2808 

    Please reach out to me directly with any questions or concerns. If there is more information to share regarding this situation, I will contact our families immediately.

    Thank you,

    Mrs. Candace Cherry

    Principal