State Board of Education calls for review and reforms after Oxford shooting

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The Michigan State Board of Education on Tuesday called for a full independent review of the Oxford High School mass shooting at the request of the parents of the four teenagers shot and killed by a student in 2021.

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The board passed a resolution asking the Legislature to fund a review of officials' response to the shootings. The resolution also calls on lawmakers to pass laws that incorporate suicide and threat assessment into any emergency operation plan. Additionally, the council called on lawmakers to expand funding for mental health in the 2024-25 state budget.

The council is an elected body that can make recommendations to lawmakers, but does not have the power to pass laws.

Although an independent report by an investigative firm released in October found multiple failures by school officials to prevent the shootings, parents of the victims told the board last month that many questions still remained unanswered.

Several lawsuits against the district and its employees are pending. Last year, a circuit court dismissed a complaint in one case because of government immunity.

The shooter's parents were each sentenced to at least 10 years in prison for failing to stop their son from committing the murders.

The board voted 7-1 to adopt the resolution introduced by Democrat Judith Pritchett. Tom McMillin, a Republican, voted against.

McMillin said he could not support the resolution because it omitted measures he had suggested, including laws that remove government immunity for school districts in litigation alleging safety lapses, as well as the granting of subpoena power for an independent review.

“It's very frustrating, we could actually do something that would uncover the truth about what happened at Oxford and force systemic change,” he said.

The board's approval of the resolution comes seven months after board member Nikki Snyder, a Republican, fought with Democratic members to include her own resolutions on school safety. Snyder and McMillin are the only Republicans in the Democratic-controlled body.

His latest attempt, in April, urged lawmakers to create a statewide emergency response plan, remove protections shielding public school officials from legal liability, hold staff accountable safety violations, require annual school safety inspections, and create a database of student deaths and injuries. among other measures. The board refused to vote on his proposals.

At the time, board President Pamela Pugh disparaged Snyder by insinuating that other members were in no hurry to address school security. Other members said they had already passed a number of other resolutions regarding school safety and student mental health following the Oxford shooting.

Snyder asked the board Tuesday to consider amended versions of those resolutions, but Democratic members voted against it.

The resolution passed included some of Snyder's proposals, including the recommendation that an independent investigation follow any event resulting in the death of a student at school.

Snyder said she voted for the resolution because she knew parents of Oxford students wanted action.

“There are still elements missing from this resolution,” she said. “And so I’m not going to give up. I think this needs to continue to be a topic that we talk about, that we're willing to come back to. I don't want to hesitate. »

Hannah Dellinger covers K-12 education and state education policy for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at [email protected].

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