After Mira Costa High School was closed for the second time in a week, Manhattan Beach Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Michael Matthews weighed in on the closures in an email sent to staff Friday afternoon, after he said Manhattan Beach police had determined that “no suspicious activity exists at Mira Costa High School.”
Manhattan Beach police and the FBI were continuing to search for the culprits for both cases, he said, and two parents had called with information that “might be valuable.”
“I share the frustration that many of you have expressed at the disruption this has caused our school and our community,” Matthews wrote. “We lost two days of instruction at the high school last year and now two days this year. Our students, parents, and employees have had to deal with uncertainty and no small amount of stress. We have reacted to all of these threats with great caution, and we believe that has been the correct response. This is the unfortunate nature of our world today. We have to walk the fine line of not letting threats impact our way of life, while at the same time acting prudently to keep students and staff out of harm’s way.”
He added that “a larger conversation between our city, parents, students, employees, and all other stakeholders” was necessary, and that the school district was looking to “facilitate that conversation in the near future.”
The school was also closed for two days last November after threats were made on the social media app Yik Yak.
Some threatening graffiti was found on Redondo Union High School Friday morning, but school wasn’t cancelled. Principal Dr. Nicole Wesley said the graffiti was being cleaned up and the school was working with Redondo Beach police, who would be present at the school throughout the day. ER
