BOE President Applauds Faculty's Actions During Lockout

Garden City Board of Education president Barbara Trapasso praised the efforts of faculty and staff during the Sept. 25 lockout after a gunman opened fire in E. Garden City.

The shooting occurred at Savenergy, a lighting company near Roosevelt Field Mall. Garden City schools, including nearby Stewart Elementary School, were placed on lockout in response to the incident.

Trapasso said staff gave up their lunch periods to fill in for lunch monitors who were unable to enter the building during the lockout. Schools are placed on "lockout" when there's a security concern outside the building. (Schools are placed on "lockdown" when a threat is close to or inside the building.)

"It just goes to show you when such a crisis is happening outside our building, how our buildings all joined together,” she said. “Each building was safe, and teachers and staff made sure that the children went on with their duties and had the day go as smoothly as possible.”

Trapasso added that many students were excited to eat lunch with their teachers and principals.

The lock out was lifted at 1:53 p.m. after an all-out search for the shooter, identified as Sang Ho Kim, brought police to Putnam County where Kim's getaway car was discovered.

Police believe Kim shot the two employees, one fatally, over a business deal gone bad. His dead body washed ashore in Rockland County five days after the shooting. The gun authorities believe Kim used was found Oct. 9 near the bank of Sandy Beach State Park in Cold Spring, NY.