Superintendent on Alexandria City High School student stabbing: 'This isn't normal'
Superintendent speaks out after Alexandria City High School student stabbing
Dr. Gregory Hutchings Jr. said he hasn’t been able to speak on the situation publicly because of the ongoing police investigation but said he felt it was important to send condolences to the family and loved ones of Luis Hernandez.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - For a second week, most students at Alexandria City High School will participate in virtual learning.
The decision is tied to an incident where an 18-year-old student, Luis Meija Hernandez, was stabbed and killed off campus by a 16-year-old classmate.
During Thursday night’s school board meeting, the superintendent took some time to address the situation.
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Dr. Gregory Hutchings Jr. said he hasn’t been able to speak on the situation openly because of the ongoing police investigation but said he felt it was important to publicly send condolences to the family and loved ones of Luis Hernandez.
"One thing I do know is that our school community is not ok," Dr. Hutchings said. "I know that our students are not ok. I know that our staff is not ok. I know that I’m not ok and that this isn’t normal. It’s a student’s life and as we talk about suspects or a suspect whatever the situation is going to end up becoming those are lives that are lost too."
RELATED: 16-year-old Alexandria City High School student charged with murder for fatally stabbing classmate
Dr. Hutchings said he was sad knowing the class of 2022 will graduate Saturday and one of the students won’t be there.
He spoke on the incident while the board was discussing a resolution against gun violence following the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
He said that in addition to discussing gun violence, it’s important to talk about violence in general.
"And as a community I think this is the time that we all must come together not pointing fingers at anybody not talking about certain entities but talking about how we all work to make sure we don’t have to have situations like this again or worse," he said.
Later in the meeting, student representatives discussed how students were feeling after Luis Hernandez’s death.
One of the student representatives said the move to virtual learning this week, while necessary, has been difficult for students and staff.
"I know many students I talked to were explaining how going back to zoom was very uncomfortable and brought a lot of déjà vu of previous school years, as well as teachers expressing how much they wanted and how it was necessary to be with students during this difficult time," the ACHS student said.
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School officials tell FOX 5 virtual learning will continue for students at Alexandria City high school through the end of the school year which ends next Friday, June 10th.
They also mentioned that students still have the option of coming in person if they need any mental health support or resources.