KHS investigates concerning social media post Friday Dec. 3

Grace Marcus and Rachel Finan| December 3, 2021

Grace Marcus

KPD worked with KHS administration to ensure that a concerning social media post did not pose a threat to KHS students.

KHS Principal Dr. Mike Havener was notified early on the morning of Friday, Dec. 3 that a concerning image was posted to Instagram by a KHS student the previous night. 

“We immediately contacted the Kirkwood Police Department who involved the student and family,” Havener said. “There was no direct threat to the school. It was just a picture.”   

According to Havener, KHS administration worked with KPD to ensure there was no threat to KHS and to ensure the safety of its students. 

Many students have seen a post on the Instagram account @kirkwoodalmostfriday, which is run by underclassmen. The image depicts a KHS student holding a firearm, which has since been removed from the account. No one could confirm whether the firearm was real. Havener declined to confirm whether this was the post that was under investigation, but encouraged all students to report anything suspicious they may see. 

“If you see something, say something. It goes back to making sure that we’re communicating with each other,” Havener said. “We need everybody’s eyes and ears open, because we [KHS administration] obviously can’t monitor every social platform out there. We all want KHS and the [Kirkwood] community to be as safe as possible. It takes all of us to do that.”

KHS will hold another intruder drill in early January, during which students will work to improve  procedures that were previously practiced. In light of the recent school shooting at Oxford High School in Michigan and lockdown Dec 2 at Webster Groves High School, Havener also encouraged students to utilize the mental health resources KHS provides. This includes the KHS guidance department and counselors. 

“With everything going on, communicating is critically important,” Havener said. “We need to make sure we have the resources for people to talk about their feelings and emotions. Don’t bottle it up. That’s the worst thing you can do. [Needing to talk to someone] doesn’t mean that you are weak — everyone has emotions.”

 

If you see anything suspicious, please report it to KHS administration.

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