In his first public comments since the boy’s death on Feb. 15, Warwick said school officials are cooperating fully with the Hampden district attorney office’s investigation.
Springfield Schools Superintendent Daniel Warwick said all swimming classes and other pool-related activities throughout the city district have been canceled while officials investigate the death of a student at the Kiley Middle School pool.
SPRINGFIELD — Springfield Schools Superintendent Daniel Warwick said school officials have halted all swimming classes and other pool-related activities throughout the district while they conduct a full review of the death of a 12-year-old boy during a swimming class at Kiley Middle School on Feb. 15.
Warwick said school officials are cooperating fully with the Hampden district attorney office’s investigation.
“Sadly, today marks one week since the unspeakable tragedy occurred where we lost one of our students. As a school district, we are doing all that we can in the aftermath of such a tragedy. We have reached out to the family. We have made counseling available. We have suspended all pool-related activities at all of our schools for the time being. And we have begun reviewing the events leading up to this tragedy with the purpose of conducting a full review to determine exactly what occurred,’ Warwick said in a press release issued Friday morning.
Warwick’s office has not released the name of the sixth grade student, saying the School Department is not permitted to release personal information about students.
Hampden District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni said Thursday the investigation is ongoing, and his office is awaiting the results of an autopsy conducted Monday. The preliminary report stated that results are pending the return of certain testing that has been sent out by the local office of the state Medical Examiner, he said.
“The investigation revolves around whether or not there was negligence or recklessness that rose to the level of criminal activity,” Mastroianni said.
All information received thus far indicate the death was a drowning, “however there is no way I can say that conclusively without the benefit of an autopsy that will give us information regarding the health of the young person,” Mastroianni said.
The student was pronounced dead at Baystate Medical Center after being rushed to the hospital from Kiley following the incident shortly before 2:30 p.m., on Feb. 15. It occurred during a regular swimming class involving approximately 45 students and two teachers, according to police.
A team from the state Department of Public Safety inspected the pool at the Kiley Middle School Wednesday, five days after the death of a 12-year-old student.City Health Director Helen R. Caulton-Harris said results of the inspection should be made public next week.
Warwick’s full statement is below:
“Sadly, today marks one week since the unspeakable tragedy occurred where we lost one of our students. As a school district, we are doing all that we can in the aftermath of such a tragedy. We have reached out to the family. We have made counseling available. We have suspended all pool-related activities at all of our schools for the time being. And we have begun reviewing the events leading up to this tragedy with the purpose of conducting a full review to determine exactly what occurred.
Understandably, there has been an avalanche of questions and concerns. People both inside and outside of our organization want answers. They are desperate to understand what happened, how it happened, why it happened and what will happen next.
As superintendent, I assure you I am just as desperate to learn the answers to those questions and based on those answers to make thoughtful determinations about what must occur next. I promise that those decisions will be made with one thing and one thing only in mind – what is best for all of our students in moving forward.
The fact of this matter is that this process will require time. We need time to fully investigate, making sure that every aspect is covered and that we can be confident in our process once it is complete.
We have worked closely with police officials as they conducted their investigation. It has been reported that the police department has turned their investigation over to the Office of the District Attorney and we fully support and respect that measure.
We have also been in contact with the Springfield Department of Health and Human Services, which worked with the state department this week to conduct an inspection of the pool at Kiley. I certainly anticipate the state’s findings and, again, support those measures.
We consulted the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to verify that we were operating within their prescribed guidelines for swimming curriculums and learned that we were. Nonetheless, I have made the decision to suspend all swimming classes throughout the district because I expect and understand that there may be a high level of angst and anxiety around the program at this point.
As Superintendent, it is my intent to make sure this investigative process is beyond reproach. That is precisely the reason why I am unable to answer many questions that have been posed to me at this juncture. Jeopardizing the integrity of this process is simply a risk that I am not willing to take. So for now, I will continue to keep the details of our investigation and the personnel matters that lie therein confidential. However, you have my word that I will personally share the findings and courses of actions that result with our entire community once they are determined.
Next week will be a difficult one at Kiley. We have communicated with the school already, assuring them that it will be outfitted with grief counselors for both students and staff. It is important for us to take care of the hurting adults in the school so that they can be better prepared to take care of the kids. We will have counselors available early in the morning to meet with staff. During that morning meeting, staff will be provided information, teacher-to-student talking points, protocols and practices that they can utilize to bring a sense of comfort, normalcy and warmth to the students. Professional grief counselors will be stationed in the school all day and during the week.
Last Saturday, we opened the school for several hours and a good number of staff and some students took advantage of the opportunity to seek solace and comfort in one another and to receive professional grief counseling. We also made arrangements for Springfield Public Schools staff to have 24-hour crisis counseling available throughout this week.
As I stated in the opening of my remarks, it has been one week since tragedy struck our school district. Words cannot express our deep sorrow. I ask that you join me in continuing to pray for the family of our lost student, his friends, teachers and all who have been touched by his life.