Superintendent: Glenfield School Principal Mishandled BB Gun Incident

When the principal of Glenfield Middle School found a student with an imitation firearm in a backpack last month, he mishandled the situation and compromised student safety, which ultimately led to his resignation, said Superintendent Penny MacCormack.  

Glenfield Middle School Principal Charles Miller “made some significant errors” in response to finding a student with an imitation firearm on April 24, MacCormack said Monday. The “omissions” in Miller’s report of the incident “did not help me feel I could trust the leadership in the school any further.” 

During a special meeting Monday in the municipal building organized by the parent/teacher group Glenfield School Action Team, MacCormack told more than 150 parents gathered there that Miller — contrary to protocol — did not immediately contact police when he discovered a student brought what she described as a “BB gun” onto a school bus and into the school in April. 

Miller was able to confiscate the imitation gun and diffuse the situation soon after another student informed him, said MacCormack. However, Miller did not contact police nor share “pertinent information and critical facts” with the superintendent until two days later on April 26. 

“The policies are very clear,” said MacCormack, “any gun that shoots something out of it like a pellet ... would be considered in New Jersey a firearm. ... There is no discretion there.”

These revelations, said MacCormack, led her to launch an investigation into the incident. The investigation found Miller mishandled the situation, did not follow state regulations and failed to communicate all details to the superintendent's office. 

The investigation ultimately led to Miller resigning as principal of the school. MacCormack bluntly stated, “probation was not an option” because Miller was up for tenure this year in the district. If Miller did not resign, MacCormack said he would have been suspended and not tenured.  

“It’s my responsibility at the end of the day to take all the factors together ... and make sure that I can ... trust the security and safety of 800 students and the staff with this individual and my decision was I could not,” said MacCormack. 

‘The Entire District is at Risk’

Many parents said MacCormack was also to blame for mishandling the incident and at least one person called for the superintendent to resign. 

Resident Pamela Cytron said there should be repercussions for MacCormack and those who failed to handle the situation in her office.

“It should have been handled differently,” said Cytron. “My fear is, it’s not Glenfield [School]; the entire district is at risk because of the failure of the leadership of the district, not of the principal.” 

“This was a firearm and ... there have to be some repercussions on your office,” added resident Shannon Masur. 

While MacCormack took responsibility for how the incident was handled, she said principals must be able to handle these types of situations when they occur and be held accountable. 

“At no point am I shying away from the fact that my office is responsible, and at the same time emergencies need to be handled on-site,” said MacCormack. “We have to train our principals and hold our principals accountable for what is a very difficult job.”

Other residents said Miller was part of the community and should be supported like anyone else.

“Some of us support what you [MacCormack] did and some of us don’t ... but [Miller] was part of our community and he is gone,” said resident Cindy Stagoff. “This man has four little girls and I’m worried about how he’s going to get a job.” 

New Emergency Drills, Cameras and Security  

The response at Glenfield Middle School will cause the district to reanalyze how similar emergencies are handled in the future. 

Additional annual training of school staff, administrators and bus drivers will be held to clarify how to handle emergency situations, said MacCormack. Top administrators at Montclair’s schools will also go through special safety training and review proper protocol. 

Schools will soon practice additional emergency drills during different times of the school day, said MacCormack. She added many district schools have already begun practicing these drills. 

The district will also consider placing live video cameras on all school buses.  

MacCormack, who said further community input is needed before any “rash actions” are taken, did not endorse a stronger police presence in all schools. 

“If the community feels that [a police presence] is of high value, it is something we will have to discuss,” said MacCormack.

Another similar meeting will be hosted by the Glenfield School Action Team on Tuesday at 7:30 pm in the Glenfield School auditorium, at 25 Maple Ave.