Newburgh considers changing event schedule after 3 shot following football game

NEWBURGH - The Newburgh Enlarged City School District has added police presence throughout its buildings and is considering moving evening sport events to daylight or weekends after three people were injured in a shooting following a Friday night football game.

While police are investigating what happened before five shots were fired in the north parking lot at Newburgh Free Academy, students returned to school on Monday.

It was a normal school day, superintendent Jackielyn Manning Campbell said, except for the presence of additional police officers and clinicians providing security and support.

“This is a tragedy for our entire community. The injured individuals and our entire community are in our thoughts as we take a moment to grieve for the trauma we experienced,” Manning Campbell wrote in a letter to the district families. “Safety and security are of the utmost importance to our community.”

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According to police, the shootings happened in the north parking lot around 9:35 p.m., just after a football game with Warwick High School had ended. A 43-year-old woman was shot in a foot, a 19-year-old woman was shot in a thigh and a 21-year-old man was shot in an ankle as people were exiting the game. None of the injuries were believed to be life-threatening.

In the wake of the shooting, the district set up three sites on Sunday to assist families and staff who would like to process their thoughts. Over this week, a team made up of 108 professionals and several therapy dogs are offering support.

“As we know about trauma, it may not take you immediately, but throughout the upcoming days and weeks we may see folks who want to talk more about it,” Manning Campbell said. “We’re going to continue to provide space and restorative circles in our schools.”

The district also added police throughout the community. Manning Campbell emphasized proactive approaches ensured a quick response to Friday’s incident. More than 50 security personnel, including police officers, security monitors, faculty, staff, coaches and administrators, were in attendance and responded.

While the district already has safety procedures in place for large school events, the officials are considering other approaches, including moving evening sport events to daylight or weekends, to ensure safety for future events.

The district's existing policy requires students to meet certain expectations before attending sport events, and a parent or guardian must accompany children who do not attend Newburgh Free Academy. Bags are inspected and each person is screened through a metal detector or wand.

Meanwhile, the district is also trying to act proactively to keep ahead of incidents.

Multiple social emotional support programs are offered for both students and employees. Support team members made themselves available throughout the day in each building.

“We can’t do this alone. It truly takes a village,” said Manning Campbell.

Helu Wang covers education for the Times Herald-Record and USA Today Network. Reach her at hwang@gannett.com.