On April 10, a large print of graffiti was reported in the BVH boys’ Physical Education locker room. Taking this as a threat, Principal Lee Romero immediately reported it to the Chula Vista Police Department (CVPD), where they discussed what next steps they should take. The following morning, the CVPD met with Romero at BVH.
Simultaneously, Romero requested for the police officers to monitor the traffic in front of the school, causing people to raise questions about the multiple police cars on campus. After taking the first steps to alleviate this issue, the police officers and Romero established a plan to address the problem to the BVH community members.
“As soon as I got information, I sent an email out to parents and said it was being investigated. I got a lot of feedback from parents thanking me. The school is safe and we take threats like that very seriously and unfortunately we take these threats so seriously that it costs the CVPD and us a lot of resources,” Romero said.
Later that day, Romero posted a video on Instagram addressing the issue and explained what was being done to investigate the situation. Despite the email and the video, ten students left the school day out of precaution and throughout the day, .BVH community members were concerned. The graffiti itself contained explicit sayings, leading Romero to acknowledge that events like these did not occur as often in other schools.
“I put my counselor hat on, since I was a teacher and counselor [before], and [viewing the] graffiti, tagging and vandalizing [at] schools is not normal behavior. The people that are doing it here are just seeking the wrong attention and it’s unfortunate they’re doing this. As a previous counselor, sometimes this is a cry out for help, expressing that they’re lost,” Romero said.
The people that are doing it here are just seeking the wrong attention and it’s unfortunate they’re doing this. As a previous counselor, sometimes this is a cry out for help, expressing that they’re lost
— Principal Lee Romero
As Romero continues to investigate these actions, he looks forward to the new security cameras arriving on campus. These cameras will allow the administration to observe who enters and exits the bathrooms, narrowing down potential suspects in vandalism acts like this.
“I am not talking about punishing the kids but taking care of them. On the other hand if they are doing threatening things I will personally make sure that person does not attend this school. I don’t take threats lightly,” Romero said.