GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — After a recent series of violent events at or nearby high school campuses in Gwinnett County, an event is being to discuss solutions.
Wednesday’s event is being hosted by New Mercies Christian Church where Lawrence Williams is the young adult and student pastor.
“Very honestly it breaks my heart because I understand it is interrupting the progress of these students, not just education-wise but it is interrupting their emotional and mental health,” said Williams.
He said his church planned to host the event in late November or December, but after a high school student was shot and killed last week near Norcross High School they quickly planned to host the event earlier.
Williams said the recent violence at or near Gwinnett schools cannot be ignored.
“What can we do to stop it?” Williams asked during an interview with 11Alive. “We don’t want to put a band-aid on anything. We don’t want a temporary fix. We want to created a solution that is going to help our students have a great learning environment.”
At the event New Mercies is hosting, Williams said the focus will be on helping students develop conflict resolution skills.
Parents, students and community members from around Gwinnett County are invited to attend. It was set for 7 p.m. The superintendent and police chief for Gwinnett County Schools and the Gwinnett County Police Chief are expected to participate, in addition to other community members.
“We want to empower and educate students on conflict resolution skills,” Williams said. “Majority of what is going on in the schools at the root of it is our students are lacking that ability and that skill to just resolve conflicts.”
In mid-October, Shiloh High School went into a soft lockdown with the school’s principal reporting someone walked onto campus after buses left for the day and may have fired a gun.
One week ago, 17-year-old DeAndre Henderson was shot and killed near Norcross High. Henderson’s mother said she believes her son was lured away from the school and shot during a fight nearby. An 18-year-old has been arrested on murder charges.
Monday, a student from Grayson High headed to the hospital after being attacked with a box cutter, according to the school’s principal.
Williams said he hopes Wednesday’s event shows students that violence isn’t the answer to their issues.
“It doesn’t resolve the conflict, he said. “There isn’t any healthy way to do that when we are involving violence, when we are involving weapons into things that can take place with just a simple conversation.”
Williams added New Mercies plans for Wednesday’s meeting to be the beginning of a series of events focused on ending violence involving teens at school.