Parents demand disciplinary action after info about alleged threat against school employee withheld

ASHBURN, Va. - Parents in Loudoun County are demanding disciplinary action after school administrators reportedly withheld information about a threat made against an elementary school employee.

A staff member at Lucketts Elementary School in Leesburg claimed her ex-boyfriend threatened to harm her at the school on Aug. 20, which led to the ex-boyfriend being arrested the next day. The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said the school requested a deputy to guard the campus on the day of the arrest.

But parents were only notified about the incident more than a month after the fact.

However, parents were not the only ones who found out about the alleged threat several weeks later after it happened. FOX 5 has learned Loudoun County Public Schools Superintendent Eric Williams was also kept in the dark about the incident.

At a PTA meeting held Wednesday night, parents demanded a full-time school resource officer be assigned to Lucketts. They also want a security audit performed within the next 30 days. Lastly, they are demanding a clear policy and protocol on how the school district deals with credible threats against its employees.

"They apologized to us," said Lucketts Elementary School PTA President Amy Tribie. "They admitted that it was not just one level, but many levels of administration that dropped the ball. Eric Williams, who is our superintendent at the very top, was not notified about the situation until last Friday, and that was only because some of us parents had cc'ed him on our absentee emails. That is how our superintendent of schools found out."

Tribie said Williams did not show up at the PTA meeting Wednesday night despite being invited. The school district said he had a longstanding commitment and was represented by Assistant Superintendent for Support Services Kevin Lewis, who oversees safety and security, and Director of School Administration Dr. Virginia Patterson at the meeting.

Even so, parents said they are appalled by how Loudoun County Public Schools has handled this situation.

"We were told repeatedly by anyone at LCPS that was contacted - through admin, anywhere - that there was no threat, this was a new protocol for all elementary schools in Loudoun County," said Tribie. "We should be grateful and feel safe for the officers, but we have nothing to fear, the school is safe and we absolutely had no threat."

Tribie said she believes parents were lied to and there should be disciplinary action taken.

The PTA said it will present its three mandates at the school board meeting next Tuesday.

The school district said they have received the PTA's resolution, but have not had enough time to review the mandates and issue a comment about them.