Most Slater Middle School teachers call out sick as faculty rally for campus safety after latest student fight, lockdown

All but five Herbert Slater Middle School teachers were absent Friday along with 16% of students as frustrated faculty members and families rallied off-campus for safer schools following a campus fight Thursday that triggered a two-hour lockdown and resulted in the arrest of the three involved students.

About 100 people gathered outside the school Friday morning, cheering at honking cars, many with bright yellow signs that said “SAFE SCHOOLS NOW” provided by the Safe Campus Alliance, a parent group advocating for safer schools and the return of campus police officers to Santa Rosa City Schools.

Thirty-one of the school’s 36 teachers were absent Friday, according to district officials. Out of 712 students enrolled at Slater, 589 were present Friday and 114 were absent for the full day.

“As teacher absences began to trickle in yesterday (Thursday), district staff worked tirelessly to find substitutes who could fill in today,” said Vanessa Wedderburn, a district spokesperson. Classes unfilled by substitutes were covered by certificated district staff.

Many of the Slater teachers called out sick Friday so they could “take a personal day” to recover from stress of the previous day, said Meaghan King, a special-education teacher at Slater. Some said they were there to fight for district action to make schools safer.

However, around 8 a.m., news that the district was considering their actions an “illegal strike” was making the rounds among participants.

By 8:30 a.m., district officials told union representatives that if Slater and Montgomery teachers were not in their classrooms by the start of first period, there may be potential repercussions.

The sheer number of Slater teachers who didn’t show up for work on Friday was a powerful symbol, King said, reflecting their need “to cope with the stressors of yesterday, even after we requested to have a day of rest. District personnel denied that heartfelt request.”

King said the rally on Friday was not union-related and that the teachers had partnered with the Safe Campus Alliance to demand change.

Wedderburn said the district is reviewing the current Santa Rosa Teachers Association contract to verify Friday’s activity was within the agreement. “If it is not, the activity would be deemed non permissive,” she said.

The ramifications were not immediately clear. Santa Rosa City Schools Superintendent Anna Trunnell said while she did not condone the teachers’ action, it wasn’t her immediate concern.

“Following the many student incidents threatening campus safety, including incidents that involved weapons on campuses, some employees are demonstrating their concerns and frustration by engaging in ‘sickouts,’” Trunnell said in a statement Friday afternoon. “While I do not condone this practice or the disruption it causes families and our school programs, my focus at this time is on addressing and solving these larger safety concerns.“

At Slater, a handful of parents and students remained on the sidewalk rallying through the first period. They were gone by 9 a.m.

Amanda Dalton, president of the Slater Parent Teachers Organization, said she was concerned for her son, who was stuck in the locker rooms during Thursday’s lockdown.

“I just feel like the administration is doing everything they can, but the school board is tying their hands,” she said. “Our kids shouldn’t have to go to school every day in fear.”

She added that she is in support of enforcing disciplinary policies, bringing back school resource officers and alternative education programs that would provide better support for the handful of students frequently causing issues.

The Thursday incident involved two students who started a gang-related fight inside a classroom with another schoolmate who ended up brandishing a knife, officials said.

No one was hurt, but the incident triggered another outpouring of concern, especially from teachers and parents, around persistent safety issues plaguing campuses across the Santa Rosa City Schools. The three involved students, all 13-year-old boys, were arrested.

“I would say we’re feeling upset, anxious and helpless right now,” said David Healy, an eighth grade science teacher, who held a cardboard sign which simply said “HELP.”

He said the incident Thursday was “completely predictable” as the second shelter-in-place at Herbert Slater this fall. The first was Sept. 1, when Montgomery High School students and older juveniles entered the Herbert Slater campus to target a middle schooler. The assailants had made previous threats, including brandishing a weapon online.

Just over a week ago, an altercation led to a 14-year-old student being stabbed on Santa Rosa High School’s baseball field. The student had multiple lacerations to his torso that were not life threatening.

The incident Thursday was eerily similar to the fatal stabbing on Montgomery High School’s campus on March 1, in which a student was targeted by older students who entered his classroom.

Several teachers at the rally talked about the need to bring police officers back to campus, enforce disciplinary rules and provide more alternate education placements for struggling kids.

They emphasized that they feel their school administration is doing their best, but their hands are tied, and the school board needs to take action.

Trunnell signaled that she was taking those staff and community concerns seriously.

“Given all that has transpired over the past year, I understand their concerns and frustration which are genuine, and I want to confirm that, at my recommendation, the Board of Education has agreed to discuss school safety at the next meeting of the Board on Dec. 13th,” Trunnell said in the written statement.

Tami Axthelm, a P.E. teacher at Slater, said that during Thursday’s lockdown she was hunkered behind her door for 30 minutes with a fire extinguisher, with many students panicking.

“Nothing's changed at the district level,” she said. “We have kids who are violent, who are continuously being brought to our campus. And the district is aware that these students are here.”

“I feel like everybody has a right to education,” she said. “The majority of people are being ignored. And all the resources are going into the minority that are causing the problems.”

Axthelm said she was at the rally because “our letters, Press Democrat articles, even a student death, has not been enough to create change. This is my way of finally saying ‘I’m done.’”

Staff Writer Adriana Gutierrez contributed to this story. You can reach Staff Writer Alana Minkler at 707-526-8531 or alana.minkler@pressdemocrat.com. On X, formerly Twitter, @alana_minkler.