What steps do Merced County school districts take to protect students? Here’s what you should know

Following the recent arrest of a teenager and his father over alleged threats to harm students, Merced County school officials said there are several systems in place designed to help keep students safe.

“Safety is a top priority for us, both physical safety of our campus as well as social emotional safety for our students,” said Merced City School District Superintendent Julianna Stocking.

The Merced City School District and the Merced Union High School District have various safety measures across campuses to increase student safety, including two school resource officers who primarily support the district’s middle school campuses, Stocking said. Those officers rotate throughout the schools providing support when needed.

Eight contracted officers are stationed across the MUHSD campuses, four are provided by the Merced Police Department and four by the Merced County Sheriff’s Office. The MUHSD said campus liaisons, as well as staff and administrators, maintain visible and consistent supervision across the district’s campuses.

Stocking said that school resource officers have positive interactions with students as they work to build trust so that students know the officer is someone they can go to in a time of need. The district safety plans are reviewed annually by a safety committee that provides feedback, looking at specific areas, such as the entrances and exits to campuses to ensure gates are secure and camera systems up to date.

“We’re very fortunate to have a partnership with Merced Police Department,” Stocking said. “We work very collaboratively together with Chief (Steven) Stanfield and our school resource officers so we have a very coordinated effort anytime we have a crises response situation.”

Stocking said she’s in talks with Stanfield about a program that would encourage police officers to check in with MCSD schools, periodically, that are located in their designated patrol areas. The district is also considering increasing the number of school resource officers “as we look to transition our sixth-graders back to middle school,” Stocking said.

With the passing of the Measure O bond, Stocking said a portion of the funds will be used to focus on safety and facility upgrades, including updating camera systems and evaluating campus fences. The district also has invested in staffing support, so each school has a campus security liaison.

The MCSD school liaisons operate as part of the district’s Positive Behavior Intervention Support. Stocking said the liaisons make conscious efforts to build positive relationships with students, allowing them the opportunity to have a positive experience interacting with an additional adult.

Both of the districts require visitors to check in when arriving on campus. The MCSD does not use metal detectors. The MUHSD said board policy permits their use as an added safety measure, when deemed necessary.

“Our team members work collaboratively to ensure that they are consistently monitoring who’s entering the campus, who’s exiting the campus and doing walks proactively during class, as well as right before and after, to ensure the safety of our students and staff,” Stocking said.

When it comes to reporting a potential threat, both districts have online platforms that allow students, staff and families to anonymously and confidentially report concerns. The MUHSD does this through the Tip 411 online platforms, while the MCSD uses the Stopit App, allowing anonymous reporting of bullying, discrimination or other unsafe behaviors. Per law, designated stakeholders are required to engage in annual planning processes in order to develop policies and strategies to not only prevent but also respond to various incidents, some of which include emergencies, violence, active assailants or intruders, natural disasters, harassment, and bullying or child abuse, according to the MUHSD.

Specific schools, as well as district safety committees and Threat Assessment Teams, work to coordinate safety strategies and improvements throughout the MUHSD campuses. When responding to a potential threat, the MUHSD said the district can use several ways of communicating with students, staff and families based on the type of threat and the situation. This strategy may include alerts through Parent Square, emails, the Remind App, phone calls informing students, families and staff or in-person notifications.

How threats were handled

The MUHSD said there have been six documented threats recorded during the 2024-2025 school year. Of those threats, two were deemed substantive and one involved a student threatening another resulting in an expulsion. The second led to a recommendation of expulsion and four of the threats were found to not be credible, according to the MUHSD.

Stocking said her district has received a few threats during the 2024-2025 school year and that those threats were deemed not credible. In those instances, Stocking said the district worked with the Merced Police Department and communicated with families through systems such as Parent Square.

Stocking said she could recall a couple incidents during the current school year when a MCSD school was placed on lockdown due to a threat outside the school in the surrounding area. When such incidents occurs, Stocking said the district works with the Merced Police Department to ensure the potential threat is secure and the district is able to lift the lockdown. Stocking said the required communication is then sent to staff as well as parents.

In an email to the Sun-Star Thursday, the MUHSD said it is committed to fostering a supportive and secure learning environment stating “the safety and well-being of our students and staff remain a top priority for the Merced Union High School District.”

On March 3, the Merced Police Department arrested a 16-year-old suspect and his father after authorities and Golden Valley High School administrators investigated an alleged threat the teenager made against kids with whom he was having a problem. Authorities said the alleged threat was reported to Golden Valley High School administrators by a parent after their children said they witnessed the suspect making the threats and that the suspect may have had a firearm in his possession. School officials said they were made aware of the alleged threat and possible weapon after school had been dismissed of the day.

Authorities worked with school administrators to identify the teenager and searched the child’s home after obtaining a search warrant. Police said that during the search, investigators located six unsecured firearms inside the home as well as a BB gun in the teenager’s room what was designed to resemble a real firearm. The teenager’s father, Jonathan Olvera, 35, was arrested on suspicion of child endangerment and the firearms were seized by officers. The 16-year-old suspect was arrested and booked into juvenile hall, authorities said, on suspicion of charges related to firearm offenses and criminal threats.

This story was originally published March 13, 2025 at 2:05 PM.