MESSAGE FROM SUPERINTENDENT

May 27, 2022

Dear Rowland Unified Community:

In light of the recent tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, and heightened levels of concerns regarding school safety across the country, the Rowland Unified School District is committed to the safety and well-being of our students and staff at all times. Safety is, and always will be, our top priority and a responsibility we take very seriously. We have increased supervision, including District Safety and local law enforcement patrol on, and near, all campuses. We take all threats seriously and deem them all as credible until fully reviewed with law enforcement and determined otherwise.

Late last night there was a post on social media that was a threat to school safety. It was from an anonymous source and referenced a school with the initials RHS, but did not specifically identify Rowland High School. The District immediately contacted and worked with the Walnut Sheriff’s Department and their investigation, working with local, state and federal law enforcement, confirmed it was not a credible threat to Rowland High School or any school in Southern California. This post has been identified as coming from Raymondville, Texas and involving the Raymondville Independent School District. A juvenile male has been arrested in Raymondville, Texas in connection to this social media post and his threat to school safety. In an abundance of caution, there are additional Los Angeles County Sheriff's on the Rowland High School campus today.

I would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that each of our schools have a Safety Plan in place to handle emergency situations. Each school's individual facility is taken into consideration when developing evacuation routes and emergency guidelines. Enhanced surveillance is utilized throughout our District. Safety drills are held regularly and are evaluated for areas of strength and improvement after each drill. The District works very closely with our local Industry Sheriff, Walnut Sheriff and West Covina Police agencies and will continue robust safety training with our staff and students, including but not limited to, lockdowns, fire and earthquake drills and other safety situations.

Please take the time to remind your child that if they hear something, or know something, to say something to an adult immediately. We always want our students to share with us concerns they have or information they hear so it can be reviewed with great care and detail. Again, we take all threats seriously and deem them all as credible until fully reviewed with law enforcement and determined otherwise.

If your child is anxious during this time or would like to speak with someone to help to process any concerns that they may have, we have trained school staff available at our school sites and in our District for emotional support. Please contact your school principal to request support.

Thank you for working with us to continue to keep our schools a safe learning environment.

With Gratitude,

Julie Mitchell, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools