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Verona schools report few HIB confirmations; Brookdale tack incident occurred off district property, police investigating
Summary
Superintendent presented the Student Safety Data System report showing decreases in several categories at the high school and middle school. A separate tack-laying incident near Brookdale was confirmed not to have occurred on school property and is an active police investigation.
The Verona Board of Education received required Student Safety Data System (SSDS) reports Tuesday showing multiple decreases in investigations and incidents at district schools, and heard that the Brookdale tack incident took place off school property and is under police investigation.
The superintendent said reporting period 2 (Jan. 1–June 30, 2025) showed a decline at the high school in alleged HIB (harassment, intimidation, bullying) investigations by two and a decrease in confirmed HIB cases by two compared with the prior year; preliminary determinations not initiated fell from five to two. The superintendent said the high school reported zero physical altercations in that period and no weapons incidents. "We saw in reporting period 2 0 physical altercations at the high school," the superintendent said.
At H.B. Whitehorn Middle School, the superintendent said six HIB investigations were opened in the period but only one was confirmed, down from three confirmations the previous year; the middle school reported zero fights. The district’s elementary schools showed very low incident counts: one alleged HIB not initiated at one elementary, no incidents at F.N. Brown and Forest Avenue in reporting period 2, and one restraint incident at Landing Avenue attributed to an elopement or risk of self-harm, which district staff said was handled by trained personnel.
Board members asked how the district records causes for fights and whether trend analysis occurs. The superintendent said incident summaries are kept in the student information system (Genesis) under an incidents category and typically include a brief summary and consequences; she described the summaries as brief but usable for basic trend identification.
Regarding the Brookdale tack incident, the superintendent said the tack-laying occurred on a path owned by a nearby apartment complex, not on district property, and that police have an active investigation. "It was very dangerous, and I hope they find out who did it," the superintendent said. The superintendent noted authorities found a bucket of tacks near the apartments.
No new policy changes were proposed at the meeting. The SSDS report was presented for board review and informational purposes only.
Why it matters: The SSDS presentation provides the board and public a summary of HIB investigations and other safety incidents for state reporting. The Brookdale tack incident raised concern about student and community safety but, according to district staff, did not involve district property.
