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Milton, Fulton County Schools tangle over threats By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com MILTON, Ga. — Milton and Fulton County Schools issued a joint statement around 4 p.m. Sept. 6 declaring the public safety partnerships between the city and school district to protect students. The joint statement is in sharp contrast to a fiery email Milton Mayor Peyton Jamison sent to Fulton County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney that morning. Jamison laid into Fulton County Schools expressing his “deep concerns” about the district’s
response to threats of violence the school system learned about relating to at least one Milton school Sept. 5. Appen Media obtained the mayor’s email to Looney after requesting explanations for rumors about threats made to local public schools in Milton, two days after a fatal shooting incident at Apalachee High School in Winder that killed four people. Jamison complained that city officials, including police, were not made aware of the threats. Public educational institutions in Milton fall under the umbrella of Fulton County Schools. A day after the fatal shooting,
Jamison said there was “a significant lapse in safety protocols … involving a threat of violence … made against students and faculty at one of the schools in Milton.” Sociologists have identified the phenomenon of mass shooting contagion, which can result in copycat events after extensive media coverage of the initial tragedy. “This lapse in public safety is unacceptable,” Jamison wrote. “It is my understanding that the Milton Police Department was not informed of this threat in a timely manner, which is alarming given the gravity of such situations and the recent
tragedy in Winder.” It is not clear what the specific threats entailed or if threats were made to more than one school in the city. “Immediate communication between the school system and local law enforcement is not just expected,” Jamison wrote. “It is absolutely essential for the safety of our children.” The day of the mass shooting, Fulton County Schools and other Metro Atlanta school districts sent out an email to parents and
See WINDER, Page 27
Girl Scout’s initiative aids special needs teens
KERI MICHAELIS/PROVIDED
From left, GiGi’s Playhouse Atlanta participant Cortni and Nora Michaelis, Troop 14494 Girl Scout who earned the prestigious Gold Award, smile and hug during a mentoring program for teens with Down syndrome — bEquals. Michaelis created the nonprofit program as a part of her Gold Award project.
MILTON, Ga. — On her way to earning the highest honor in Girl Scouts, King’s Ridge Christian School junior Nora Michaelis created a mentoring program for teens with Down syndrome — bEquals. Less than 4 percent of eligible candidates in Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta earn the Gold Award annually, according to data from a local Johns Creek-based chapter. Michaelis is a member of Troop 14494 within Johns Creek’s Two Bridges Service
Unit, where her mother serves as troop leader. Recently, the family moved to Milton. Michaelis earned her Gold Award at the end of August. Her project involved a series of opportunities throughout the school year for teens with Down syndrome to partner with neurotypical teens to improve social skills and communication. During her mentoring program at GiGi’s Playhouse
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