NORTH MANHEIM TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The school superintendent from Schuylkill County who put a bucket of rocks in each of the classrooms in his district is now calling for more security in his schools.
The Blue Mountain superintendent posted a notice on Facebook Sunday night saying that extra armed security will be at all of the district's schools following all of the media attention they've been getting.
The Blue Mountain School District near Orwigsburg has spent the past several days in the national spotlight, causing concerns for parents and for the district's superintendent.
This week, Superintendent David Helsel added more armed security to all of the district's schools.
Last week, the superintendent made national news for putting a five-gallon bucket of river rocks in each classroom in the district.
The rocks are meant to be thrown by students as a last resort if an intruder gets through other security measures and breaks into a classroom.
In the Facebook post, the superintendent says he feels all the media attention has brought negative attention to the school.
Parents Newswatch 16 spoke with say they don't think that's true.
"Well, I don't know. Any school's a target. I mean, there's just nutcases out there, you know? There really are a lot of nutcases out in the world today," Tina Shuck said.
Other parents we spoke with say they noticed the added security.
"I think the extra security is a plus with the law enforcement, the armed guards. I was up at the school today and there was an Orstown (sic) police officer up there," said a concerned parent.
"When I was growing up, we didn't have that. You just walked right into school. It was safe days though. Like now it doesn't seem like there are safe days anymore," Shuck added.
Newswatch 16 reached out to the Blue Mountain superintendent for comment. His secretary told us he is no longer doing interviews.