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Charleroi Area School Board backs decision to cancel football game

3 min read
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CHARLEROI – The decision by Charleroi Area School District’s superintendent to cancel Friday’s football game with Monessen after an alleged social media threat was backed Tuesday by the school board.

School board President Kenneth Wiltz commended the actions of Superintendent Ed Zelich for cancelling the game. He said there was a threat the administration deemed credible. “Our board fully supports the superintendent’s decision to cancel the game. We couldn’t put our students, faculty and community in danger,” he said.

The decision was made after the administration was made aware of an alleged threat by a Monessen student that a Charleroi student would be shot after the game, which was to be held at Monessen’s stadium. Administrators from Charleroi and Monessen met to discuss security and despite assurances the threat was not credible, Zelich made the decision not to participate. The cancellation disappointed many in both communities who had looked forward to the rivalry matchup.

Charleroi’s resource officer is continuing to investigate the threat.

School directors approved the naming of Ryan Brand as school safety and security coordinator in accordance with state regulations. Brand is a school resource officer at the middle/high school. As coordinator, Brand’s duties will include, reviewing the school’s policies and procedures and coordinating training and resources for students and staff. He will coordinate school safety and security assessments, make reports to school board and serve as the liaison to the state.

Charleroi has worked to enhance security in the district.

With the start of the new school year, visitors will find added security with the Raptor Visitor Management system. The system, which cost about $3,800, was installed in the elementary and middle/high school buildings. The online identification system for visitors requires them to provide photo identification upon their first visit, which will then be scanned into the system and checked against a 50-state sex offender database. If a visitor is found on a database, the school security resource officer and district principals will be alerted via email. If a parent or guardian is deemed to be on a list, they will be allowed limited access in the district with school personnel as an escort.

Zelich said in addition to the new safety measures, the administration is looking at tinting some of the elementary school windows to prevent areas being seen from the outside. “We are constantly looking for new and improved ways to keep our students and staff safe,” he said. He added the school applied for a Safe School Grant for additional radios and cameras.

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