Student Brought Knife to Middle School Dance, Supt. Confirms

In response to reports being circulated by students and parents, Saucon Valley School District Supt. Monica McHale-Small confirmed Saturday that a middle school homecoming dance held Friday night was briefly marred by an incident involving a student who allegedly brought a knife to what should have been an uneventful evening.

McHale-Small said in a statement that other students reported the boy to staff chaperones, who alerted an interim administrator and a police officer who was already at the dance providing security.

The administrator and police officer then questioned the boy, who admitted to having a knife with him, she said.

“He never made any threats, nor did he display the knife,” she said. “He willingly surrendered the knife to the police officer.”

However, he then “became upset” and ran out of the building, only to be apprehended by the police officer and escorted back to the building where he was released to the custody of his parents, she said.

McHale-Small said the information she provided was all that she could release publicly, and it remains unclear whether charges will be filed against the boy or if he might be disciplined by the school district.

In some instances so-called “zero tolerance” policies can compel school districts to expel any student who is caught with a prohibited weapon on school grounds, although exceptions can and sometimes are made.

In Saucon Valley, an exception was made for middle school students who brought a penknife and toy guns to school in 2000, according to an archived Morning Call article.