I learned this past week that a terroristic threat was made against Lampasas High School by a male juvenile. I was made aware of the incident by my daughter, an LHS National Honor Society student.

Initially, my spouse and I believed she had been a victim of some bad rumors, as we had not been contacted by the ISD concerning such an incident.

Amazing, last Monday we found a news report of this incident in question. After reviewing the story, this clearly was a credible threat made by the alleged perpetrator, as he was arrested following discovery of his motive and means for completion of the act. My thanks go out to whoever is responsible for denying the alleged perpetrator the opportunity to act.

Clearly, the ISD was informed as to what happened on that Tuesday night, as security on the LHS campus was enhanced the following day, Wednesday, Sept. 10. Obviously, the district considered the threat credible and took appropriate action based upon that threat.

If the ISD considered the possibility that the alleged perpetrator had an accomplice, or accomplices, or whether it realized the target date for such an attack was very likely Thursday, Sept. 11, remains unknown.

What is known is that as of the date of this message, the ISD has failed to properly inform the parents of the district about the specifics of this very real incident.

Specifically, the responsibility for the safety of my child is mine alone, not the district's. There is no entity within the county that has the authority to determine for me when it is safe to send my child to school. That authority is mine alone, as I am the taxpayer, the registered voter and the parent.

Further, as the taxpayer and parent, everyone on the payroll at the ISD, and every member of the LISD school board, is my employee.

As such, I hold firmly that the ISD had a fiduciary duty to inform me about this incident as rapidly as possible so that I, as a parent, could make a decision regarding the safety of my child.

This right the district violated when, without consulting with the parents, the ISD determined, on its own, that it was safe to return to school and determined that notifying parents of this incident was unnecessary.

By failing to inform me as to the potential danger of this situation, the ISD exceeded its authority, violated the trust and confidence placed in its employees by the parents, showed callous disregard for the rights of parents and demonstrated a significantly catastrophic failure in judgment. With the safety of children's lives in the balance.

I hold that these actions cannot, and will not, be tolerated. I call upon the LISD school board to address these concerns expeditiously by taking whatever steps are necessary and prudent to hold those responsible accountable for this egregious leadership failure and emplace procedures to prevent any reoccurrence of this type of incident.

Edward Lynskey
Kempner