MUSKEGON, Mich. — Orchard View Schools has lost three students since December, two teenagers and one first grader. Superintendent Thomas Hamilton is speaking out about the toll the deaths have taken on the district.
"It's been a challenge for everybody at Orchard View, the families, but especially the staff and the students," Hamilton said.
WATCH: Orchard View Schools superintendent speaks out after third student death in three months
Hamilton said he believes school is meant to be a safe space for students, and he maintains Orchard View is.
"Everything that we do is about a sense of belonging and creating a sense of belonging for students," Hamilton said. "The kids are valued, loved, taken care of when they come to school, regardless of what's happening in their neighborhood or in the neighborhoods around us."
Hamilton also addressed what he described as a mischaracterization of the district's role in recent events.
"In meeting with the police, it seems like they're just sort of coincidental, and it's just the proximity that the events are happening, and they really don't have anything to do with our school district," Hamilton said.
While none of the deaths occurred at school, Hamilton said the district's crisis team is actively responding to the grief playing out inside school buildings.
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"We have to be beacons for these kids, so that they feel like even in the really hard times, they've got caring adults that are there for them and that they can trust," Hamilton said.
Orchard View's crisis team can be reached at 231-760-1320.
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