By James Peters

Fight near Valleyview Secondary spurs school district investigation

Sep 11, 2018 | 4:28 PM

KAMLOOPS — School District 73 officials are investigating after a large fight broke out involving students of Valleyview Secondary School during the noon hour Monday.

The fight took place away from school grounds, but witnesses report it involved as many as 30 participants and 100 people watching.

In a note home to parents, Valleyview Principal Barb Hamblett said some fight participants suffered minor injuries and one was taken to hospital for precautionary reasons.

While they are concerned about the fight itself so early in the school year, Director of Learning Services Trish Smillie says the district is also concerned that several students recorded video of the fight and shared it on social media.

“We’re very concerned about an event of this nature – especially events like this that are recorded and then shared on social media,” said Smillie. “We know social media can have lasting effects and we want to make sure we understand that situation.”

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“We’ve asked that parents connect with their children regarding social media, just to make sure that they know what their children are posting and we can prevent further damage done by this.”

Smillie says the district will carry out an action plan following the fight investigation, and is trying to ensure a similar event won’t happen again this year.

“We look at all of the precipitating factors. We work with our students to determine what would lead to this type of event and ensure that there are appropriate responses to that event. We anticipate that, with a good investigation plan and with the support of our families and our students, that events like this won’t occur in the future this year,” said Smillie.