Parent urges immediate, plain‑language notification after Jefferson Elementary gun threats; board hears public request for new protocols

A Jefferson Elementary parent told the Morton CUSD 709 Board of Education on Oct. 15 that several gun threats reported this fall were not communicated promptly or clearly to families, and she asked the district to adopt faster, plain‑language notification and tighter threat‑assessment procedures.

“Parents should not have to piece together danger from vague emails,” Jessica Mon told the board during the meeting’s public‑comment period. She said a student made multiple threats in the first three weeks of school, including a threat on a bus and a later threat naming specific students and promising to return after Labor Day with a firearm.

Mon said the district’s written message to families arrived after dismissal on Sept. 2 and asked readers to “see attached file,” without using the words “gun” or “threat.” “As a parent, I had to read between the lines to realize a gun threat had been made against children in my daughter’s school, and…