Mooresville HS puts new safety protocols in place for football games

MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Officials with the Mooresville Graded School District announced new rules for safety at Mooresville High School football games. The protocols require many students to have chaperones.

On social media, MGSD said all elementary, intermediate and middle school students must have a supervising adult in order to be allowed at a home football game. Those students must be supervised throughout the game, officials said.

If any students who fall in those categories are found to be unsupervised, they are subject to being removed from the game. The student’s parent or guardian will be contacted to pick them up, MGSD said.

MGSD said the school will also start using walk-through metal detectors.

“If the detector goes off during your pass-through, we ask for your cooperation as we investigate what triggered the detector,” the district said.

School officials said all bags -- with the exception of medical bags, diaper bags and clear stadium bags -- are prohibited from the games. The bags that are allowed will be subject to being searched.

The protocols will take effect on Friday.

Tanae McClean, the chief communications officer for Mooresville Graded Schools, said Mooresville High has seen a big jump in younger student attending games without an adults, creating a safety concern.

“We’ve had more younger students unsupervised, and we just do not think that it’s possible to try to keep everyone safe and at the same time, run the football game,” she said. “This was a decision that we did not take lightly but we’re having an overwhelmingly positive response.”

Officials said threats that were called in to Mooresville High School Tuesday are not connected to the new safety protocols for football games. The district said it has had them in the works for a while now.

Also on Tuesday, several Cabarrus County schools evacuated when someone made bomb threats against them. A student was identified in connection with the Cabarrus County threats.

Mooresville police are working with investigators in Cabarrus County to determine if the threats are connected.

“We regret that these protocols need to be put in place, and ask for your understanding,” MGSD said. “Thank you for your support of our Mooresville High School football and athletics programs. As always, Go Blue Devils!”

You can read more about the changes by clicking here.

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