April 29, 2004

How the schools responded to recent tragedies

Two weeks ago it seemed that no more bad things could possibly happen to the McKinney and Yellow Springs High School community.

Students were still reeling from the discovery, in February, of the remains of a former YSHS student who had been missing two years and the resulting murder charge against a former classmate and coach. Then on April 14 a popular young coach, father and local resident died of a heart attack in the school gym.

But on Friday, April 16, the schools’ students, teachers and staff faced another tragedy. On a quick trip to get lunch, two seniors crashed into a tree a half mile from school, and later that day students learned that the driver, Anthony Brandon, had been seriously injured, and the passenger, 17-year-old Arla Smith, was dead.

According to many people involved, the school community faced its greatest challenge in recent memory with flexibility, creativity and an unflagging caring for its young people.

“Our sacred trust is to take care of the children of the district,” said Superintendent Tony Armocida. “Our job is to educate them and to care for them. If we did those things, then we did our job.”

Several students and community members this week gave the school staff high marks for their response to the recent events.

“The staff was supportive and open,” said junior Emily Foubert. “They were grieving along with us, really, but they were able to give us time to use the school as a tool to get the grief process going and for caring together as a student body. I think they did a good job.”

On April 16, grief counselors were already at the high school to help students deal with the recent death of Bryon Stubblefield, a grade-school coach, father of YSHS student Jerrico Stubblefield and mentor to many young local boys and men. On Thursday, April 15, YSHS/McKinney students began their day with an assembly in which Principal John Gudgel told the young people of Stubblefield’s death.

That assembly illustrates Gudgel’s belief that in the face of difficult realities, students need accurate information, and they need to feel a part of a community.

“It’s a close-knit community, and we need to be upfront and honest,” Gudgel said. “Invariably, rumors are bound to fly, and it’s important that the school community is given factual information.”

Gudgel also wanted to provide students with emotional support. After hearing of Stubblefield’s death Wednesday night, he contacted Dawn Cooksey of the School Based Mental Health program at the Greene County Learning Center and asked her to bring in her team of counselors. On Thursday Cooksey and several other counselors took up residence at both the high school and Mills Lawn, where Stubblefield had coached fifth- and sixth-grade basketball.

When the car carrying Brandon and Smith crashed shortly after noon on Friday, Gudgel and Armocida were among the first on the scene. And after Smith was declared dead by paramedics, the two men, who both knew the young woman well, had to put their own grief aside as they huddled behind a fire truck and planned how best to take care of the young people in their charge.

“We had to make decisions quickly,” Armocida said. “We had to decide how to tell the students and when to tell them.”

A 3 p.m. assembly had already been planned at the YSHS to discuss the next day’s Ku Klux Klan event in the village, and Gudgel and Armocida decided to use that time instead to tell students of Arla’s death. While they could have let business go on as usual, Gudgel believed that the school needed to step up to the responsibility of addressing students’ shock and grief.

“At that time, we were the one institution that could provide immediate assistance for the kids,” he said.

Gudgel contacted more counselors, including those from neighboring schools who provide assistance in crisis times, and local professional therapists who volunteer their services. When the students were told of Smith’s death — the all-school assembly ended up taking place earlier than planned, at 2:30, due to the number of students receiving the news on their cellphones — there were about 20 counselors at school, Gudgel said.

One local therapist who responded was Aida Merhemic, whose daughter, Miriam Barcus, is a McKinney School student. Upon arriving at the school, Merhemic said, she found “everyone in a state of shock.” Students stood around in clusters, crying, she said, and the shock was so great that few were able to talk about their loss. Rather, she said, students seemed to need physical closeness, both with each other and with the adults.

“Physical contact seemed the most helpful,” she said. “Kids were falling into my arms.”

Some students used the counselors to help process their grief and others supported each other, Merhemic said.

“Kids were crying in the gym, the hallways, outside,” Gudgel said. “We had kids grieving all over the building. We just tried to be there, to give them a shoulder to lean on.”

“It was the absolute saddest professional day of my 32-year career,” Armocida said.

When school let out on Friday, school officials knew that their challenge was far from over, and over the weekend, Gudgel said, he met with and called other teachers and counselors to discuss how best to support students in the following week. Administrators decided to begin school on Monday, April 19, with a two-hour delay both to help teachers plan their approach to the challenging situation and to deal with their own grief.

“We’re human, too,” Gudgel said. “We had counselors for our teachers.”

On Monday morning teachers and staff decided to dispense with regular class routines and to be open to what the students most needed, Armocida said. If students wanted to do school work, they could do so, but if students needed to share their feelings, they could do that as well.

“The staff decided to play it by ear, to be available, to do what they felt the kids needed them to do,” Armocida said.

Students had other options for how to spend their time that day. Cooksey said that she and her co-workers set up several areas for young people, since, she said, people have different ways of coping with grief. One room was a meditative space for those who wanted silence, while another included art supplies for students to express their feelings through art. The gym and fitness center were also open for those who needed physical activity. In each space, a counselor was available to help students talk through their feelings, Cooksey said.

“They needed to have their feelings normalized,” she said. “We told them that everything you’re going through is what people go through. It’s normal to be angry, to be angry with God. We talked about the stages of grief, and we let them know they’ll get through it.”

Over the weekend social worker Denise Runyon had contacted several local massage therapists who volunteered their time, and on Monday and Tuesday students could get short massages. Some young people used the opportunity to share their grief, said Jaimie Wilke, who volunteered her services.

Several students said that they appreciated the schools’ response to their needs.

“The classes were mellow and people could talk about it if they wanted to,” said junior Hillary Livingston. “There was a lot of support. It helped things move along. I think the school handled it very well.”

Through the challenging time, according to seveeral people, John Gudgel has been a model of stability. It hasn’t been easy, said Gudgel.

“I’ve been assigned a task in which people look to me for strength and calm,” said Gudgel, who credits his composure to his own faith in God. “You just dig down.”

Over the week the school needed fewer counselors, but students were still encouraged to talk to one if needed. School officials decided to close McKinney, YSHS and Mills Lawn School on Friday, April 23, the day of Smith’s funeral. The schools were closed because many students, along with most of the schools’ staff, wanted to attend the funeral, Armocida said.

The funeral, which took place at Mills Lawn gym, drew more than 700 people from all parts of the Yellow Springs community.

Now two weeks later, Gudgel, Armocida and YSHS counselor Dave Smith all emphasize their gratitude to the Yellow Springs community for its support. All three also said that teachers deserve everyone’s thanks.

“Our staff did a remarkable job,” Armocida said. “They were hurting too but their job was to help the kids. They came through.”

While classes at YSHS and McKinney have now returned to normal, students are still dealing with the loss of their classmate, and will continue to do so during upcoming school activities, including the prom and graduation.

“We’ve still got some key events coming up that may take an emotional toll,” Gudgel said. “We’re still in a fragile state of mind.”

And while the Yellow Springs community will continue to grieve the loss of Bryon Stubblefield and Arla Smith, healing seems to have begun through the schools’ efforts to address students’ needs.

“It will be such a slow process. We’re in it for the long haul,” said Emily Foubert. “But we’re in it together.”

—Diane Chiddister