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Local Schools Prepare For National Student Walkouts Over Gun Violence

The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Education building on Bethania Station Rd. KERI BROWN/WFDD

Some Triad students are planning a walkout Wednesday to protest gun violence and promote school safety.

Since the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, demonstrations have sprung up on school campuses all over the country.

But the first large-scale, coordinated national demonstration is planned for Wednesday at 10 a.m. Organizers of the Women's March have called for a 17-minute walkout, one minute for each of the 17 students and staff members killed in Florida.

School administrators have been scrambling to figure out how to let students exercise their First Amendment rights while neither disrupting school nor pulling administrators into the gun control debate.

“Should the students opt to participate in some type of walkout, our schools have some plans in place to ensure honor and respect," says Brent Campbell, spokesman for Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. "We honor and value the student voice and their First Amendment right to free speech, but we also have some concerns about student safety in an event that's been so publicly promoted around the country.”

Some schools across the country have said they will suspend those who participate. Others are setting up on-campus locations where students can express their views.

Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools says it's not encouraging the efforts or taking a stance against the demonstrations. Instead, Campbell says administrators have been discussing other ways for students to show their support.

“Can they do some banners of support? Can they do an entire poster? Can they do a balloon launch? There have been multiple conversations about multiple ways that students can have their voice heard and displayed in a way that is consistent with policy and procedure and in a way that's not disruptive to the school day,” he says.

Campbell adds that the district will enforce its closed campus policy, and outside demonstrators will not be allowed on school property.

National demonstrations are also planned for March 24, with a march on Washington, D.C.; and on April 20, the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado.

*Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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