SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – A San Francisco middle school student was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after he was violently beaten by another student earlier this week, as first reported by KTVU.
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The beating occurred at Everett Middle School, located in the Mission District on Church St., at approximately 2:42 p.m. on Monday, according to police.
One of the students, a 13-year-old, was sent to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after being struck multiple times and "assaulted" by the other student, police said. In a letter to students' families on Thursday morning following the altercation, Everett principal Esther Fensel said both students are now at home and "both families are in conversation with Everett staff to continue to repair harm moving forward."
No other information about the altercation and the condition of the injured student was available.
The situation is the latest in a string of recurring violent incidents at Everett since the beginning of the school year, the station reported.
Dheyanira Calahorrano, co-chair of the Parent-Teacher Association and mother of a 13-year-old at Everett, told the station that she and other parents have had meetings with the school district about the problems, but "nothing happened" and “nothing changed."
Other incidents mentioned in the KTVU report include a 12-year-old student suffering from a swollen eye after being beaten and another 12-year-old being beaten twice, resulting in a cut on his left arm.
According to the outlet, most of the conflicts involved students bullying Latino students who are new to the U.S. and don't speak much English.
Calahorrano told the station she is calling for a town hall meeting with school officials and the district to address the ongoing violence.
Fensel speculated the fight was the result of "an alarming and urgent rise in mental health concerns and behavioral incidents since the start of the pandemic not just at Everett, but across our district and our country" and "staffing shortages" due to COVID-19, which have each exacerbated "the challenges that urban public schools have faced for a long time--challenges that are rooted in societal issues that we must address together in community."
"This is not a story that many in the media will report but this more nuanced, complicated story provides the context for the situation in which we find ourselves," the Everett principal said. "And, by collaborating with one another, we can change this reality."
According to Fensel, the school, along with the district and commmunity organizations, have been working to identify "additional resources" for families and students. They will receive "central staff support from SFUSD on site, staff support and consultation with our colleagues at Street Violence Intervention Program (SVIP), and conversations with DCYF." The school is also set to receive additional mental health services next year.
Parents told KTVU that Fensel will resign at the end of the school year. In addition, at least nine teachers have left since the beginning of the school year. Calahorrano said two music teachers quit because of student misbehavior and one of them said he was attacked.
"SFUSD takes any student altercation or incident extremely seriously. Our number one priority is the safety of our students and ensuring we are doing everything we can to support students and their families," the district told KCBS Radio in an emailed statement. "We know the past two years have been an incredibly difficult time for students and educators everywhere, and San Francisco is no exception."
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