Kenosha school principal focuses on safety amid shooting threats

At Bradford High School, the principal is working towards making a positive change and helping the students feel safe after shooting threats circulated on social media.

JJ Kotarak is the new principal at Bradford High School and after hearing parents' concerns about student safety, he said the school and staff have security measures set in place.

"When I'm walking into this building, it's my job to make sure that we have security measures in place for any type of situation, whether that is medical or an active threat," Kotarak said.

JJ Kotarak

Bradford parents have received three phone calls from the school about shooting threats in the past week.

As schools nationwide are seeing an increase in threats, the Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD) said they are working closely with police to determine who is responsible for those threats.

"If we need to have a police presence the next day, if there's anything else that we got to have in place for a safety plan, they [law enforcement] work closely with us," Tanya Ruder said, a representative from KUSD.

While safety is a top priority at Bradford, the principal says the way they respond to threats matters.

"We're going to face challenges, we're going to face students making poor decisions and it's how we respond that will speak to the culture of who we are as a school," Kotarak said.

Watch Kenosha school principal focuses on safety, student success, and positive change amid shooting threats

Kenosha school principal focuses on safety, student success and positive change amid concerns

As a fight broke out at a Culver's after a football game near the school, the principal wants to clear up that no current Bradford students were involved.

Kotarak said that he wants to change the perception of the school, and he holds the students to a high standard.

"Bradford is a place where every kid will have an opportunity to be successful," Kotarak said. "Whether you're rich, whether you're poor, whether you're a minority or not, you will have high expectations...this is a great place."

He also strongly believes in great communication and transparency between the school and the parents. This is why he is encouraging parents to reach out to him with any concerns.

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