I thought you might want to see this short piece that came over the AP wire..

I am posting it here in full because I think it will very likely disappear from that link very soon, leaving it to Lexis-Nexis-wielding researchers to dig out later..

I also leave the totally misleading and inadequate headline out because I think the editorial decisions that go into headline-writing open up a whole ‘nother can of worms.. but just read, just read this..

- – - – - -

WYOMING, Mich. (AP) – A school safety drill that included police officers in riot gear with weapons has caused concern among some parents who say it was too realistic and frightened some students.

Police in the western Michigan community of Wyoming entered two classrooms at Lee Middle and High School on Thursday and announced there was a threat to the school, The Grand Rapids Press reported.

Students, who were unaware police were conducting a drill, were taken from the classroom into the halls, patted down by officers and asked what they had in their pockets, the newspaper said.

“Some of these kids were so scared, they just about wet their pants,” said Marge Bradshaw, a parent with four children in Godfrey-Lee Schools. “I think it’s pure wrong that the students and parents were not informed of this.”

Officers wore protective gear, including vests and helmets, and carried rifles that were unloaded and marked with colored tape to indicate they were not live weapons, the newspaper said.

Diana Silva, a parent of an eighth-grade student, said the drill went too far.

“My child was with his face to the wall in the hallway of the high school,” Silva said. “I certainly don’t want anything like this happening to my child.”

Principal David Britten said students weren’t told ahead of time to make the drill as realistic as possible. Teachers were informed moments before it took place, he said.

“I think this is the best way to do it,” Britten said. “We’re not looking to scare anyone, but we want a sense of urgency.”

But Wyoming Police Chief James Carmody said his officers were not aware students and parents were not told. He said his department will mandate that parents be notified ahead of time in the future.

“The purpose was to show how we will evacuate the classroom, not to assault the classroom,” Carmody said.

Great coverage of the event. I was live blogging remotely from Second Life. Alan took a photo of me watching you on the screen when you spoke. I did bullet points because my audio got a little wonky and I was rapidly shifting my attention between listening and watching the audio/video feed and reading the back channel in Second Life – the reactions of the educators/avatars to what was being said in real life. In addition, I had lots of IM windows, including offering a teleport to some folks who came into SL and were at the event.

My notes are here:
http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2006/10/the_birth_of_a_.html