Last Thursday night, the District held a parent meeting at S. Christa McAuliffe Elementary School to address parent concerns related to the crime committed by an intruder on the McAuliffe campus the previous Friday.

Riverside Police Department and McAuliffe School Resource Officer Erik Johansen addressed the crime and the on-going investigation, as I described in my Round-Up message last week. Presently, the perpetrator is being held without bail. The police investigation is ongoing and there are no other details about the crime to release at this time.

Officer Johansen commended the campus supervisor who spotted the perpetrator and chased him over the 6-foot perimeter fence separating the campus from the staff parking lot. Officer Johansen also commended a quick-thinking staff member who used her cell phone to take a photo of the perpetrator’s vehicle. The description provided and the photo taken led to the perpetrator's arrest.

Also during the meeting, McAuliffe Principal Gerardo Aguilar and I addressed the actions the school and District has taken and will continue to take in the wake of the incident. Specifically, the District will immediately hire eighteen full time, school safety bicycle patrol campus supervisors to be assigned to all elementary school campuses and all middle school campuses. Campus supervisors on bicycles provide increased visibility and the ability to more effectively monitor and secure the perimeter of our schools.

The campus supervisors on bicycles will need to meet physical requirements and complete a bicycle patrol training course. The full-time, 8-hour, bicycle patrol campus supervisors will be on foot until they complete required patrol training and will be in place at our schools as quickly as we can hire and assign them.

Additionally, we have accelerated the pace of work planned by our Office of School Safety. As I announced in my July 17 message to our community and again in my July 31, Back to School message, we planned to examine and assess the safety, security, emergency management, and preparedness of all school buildings and grounds. A leading California-based comprehensive safety and risk management consulting firm specializing in strategic safety and emergency, crisis preparedness, vulnerability assessments, and all avenues of training solutions will conduct the campus assessments, beginning September 6. The assessment will continue throughout the fall until every campus has been thoroughly reviewed. The findings of the assessment will be operationalized into actions immediately upon determination.

Also immediately, we are developing plans to install security cameras at all schools as well as replace current chain link fencing with anti-climb chain link fencing. I expect to announce an installation timeline for these two projects in next Sunday's message. There will be no delay.

As you know from my recent messages, our school facilities bond measure will be on the November 8 ballot. Measure J focuses on enhancing campus safety and security systems. However, the actions described above, which relate to immediately securing our campuses, are not dependent on bond funds. Safety enhancements beyond those described above, will be developed based on the findings of the vulnerability assessments. I will continue to provide regular updates on all safety projects and implementation timelines in my weekly messages.

I am at a loss for words to describe the anger, shock, disbelief, and profound sadness I feel as the Superintendent of Alvord schools as a result of the incident at McAuliffe Elementary School. I understand the anger and disbelief our families are feeling too. I accept full responsibility for this horrific incident and the obligation to take all necessary actions to restore the community’s confidence in the safety of McAuliffe and all of our schools.

Developing students with strong character who are connected to their peers, educators, and communities in meaningful ways improves student outcomes and reduces bullying and other aggressive behaviors. We work with ENVOLVE to teach our student leaders and activity directors and advisors how to connect all students by creating the world’s most engaging student activities. You may recall me describing the work Scott Bakovich and his ENVOLVE team did with our high school team in my July 24 message. Scott is back this week to work with our middle schools and our high schools together. Learn more about ENVOLVE in the brief video below.

The aesthetic environment of a school has a big impact on the way students, staff, neighbors, and members of the community feel and view their schools. This past Saturday at La Sierra High School, between 100 and 200 people participated in a campus beautification effort over the course of the morning. Thank you to all of the students, staff, parents, and community members who contributed. And thank you to the event coordinator, Assistant Principal Mr. Holmes, and Principal Dr. Cabeza.

On behalf of the Board of Education, thank you all for the care, commitment and courage you continue to show in support of our children, our school district, and our schools.

In partnership,

Allan Mucerino

Students Reporting a Positive Case: 184 (Last week 274)
Staff Reporting a Positive Case: 26 (Last week 26)
Cases Requiring Contact Tracing: 160 (Last week 261)

Riverside County Data COVID-19 Community Level: Low (last week Medium)

Weekly Metrics Used to Determine the COVID-19 Community Level

Case Rate per 100,000 population: 191.54 (Last Week 221.21)

New COVID-19 admissions per 100,000 population: 7.3 (Last Week 6.6)

% Staffed inpatient beds in use by patients with confirmed COVID-19: 5.1% (Last Week 5.3%)

Recommended actions based on current level

Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines. Get tested if you have symptoms. Wear a mask if you have symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID-19. Wear a mask on public transportation. You may choose to wear a mask at any time as an additional precaution to protect yourself and others.