By Shelby Stewart-Soldon
Staff Writer
ssoldan@mihomepaper.com
 OXFORD TWP. — The Oxford Community Schools Board of Education voted 6-0 on Aug. 27 to approve a resolution to ask the state legislature for an independent review of the emergency response to the Nov. 30, 2021 tragedy at Oxford High School.
President Dr. Erin Reis was absent from the meeting, with notice.
The resolution was written in response to recent statements made to news organizations about discrepancies in emergency response times and dispatch.
“At the end of the day, this is our recommendation. We are not the Michigan Legislature, we won’t be making the decision of who, how, when, if,” said vice president Amanda McDonough. “This is our recommendation to them.”
The resolution approved by the school board reads:
Now therefore it be resolved that the Oxford Board of Education calls upon the Michigan Legislature to mandate and fund a comprehensive, independent review of the emergency response to the November 30th, 2021 tragedy, including but not limited to relevant events and agencies during before, during, and after the tragedy.
Be it further resolved in any circumstance where a student has died, or multiple students die, as a result of a significant safety-related event, the Oxford Board of Education recommends that the Michigan Legislature mandate a full and funded independent investigation by a coordinated team of appropriate and diverse state agencies, subject matter experts, and local community members that will collaborate and coordinate with one another. This team, or commission, should be granted subpoena powers to aid in a fully transparent investigation.
Be it further resolved that the Oxford Board of Education calls upon the Michigan Legislature to pass a supplemental state budget that increases average per-pupil funding and invests in student safety and mental health safety, makes recurring all of the Section 31aa funding and Section 31n funding for children’s mental health and school safety, and to increase said budgets in subsequent years.
Be it finally resolved that the Oxford Board of Education calls upon the Michigan Legislature to enact House Bill 5549, which requires suicide and threat assessment to be a part of every emergency operations plan and threat assessment training be available in a train the trainer model for all districts in the state within two years of legislative passage and funding.
The resolution also includes statements made by Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard about wanting the state to fund an independent review, and statements from Oxford Fire Chief Mathew Majestic and Addison Fire Chief Jerry Morawski about not being dispatched in a timely manner, all of which were quoted by news agencies.
“It’s setting the stage as to why we’re making this resolution at all,” said board treasurer Mike Whitney.
The resolution will be sent to the legislature, and board members will continue to pursue the resolution with the state lawmakers.