![Adding a tray of canned corn to the pile, junior Michael Collop assists in transporting donations for the Holiday Food Drive. The event, hosted schoolwide from Dec. 10-17, raised over 5,000 food items to deliver to the Parkway Food Pantry, helping several families in need. [The drive] is a great thing for us to do because you're giving to those who are less fortunate, and it helps provide for people who can't provide for themselves. [The] competition is always fun, too. It was fun to be in [social studies teacher Jess] Chazen’s class, because he always gets worked up over [the competition]. He made it exciting, and was always convincing us to turn in cans for the drive,” Collop said.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/feature-photo-unsung-2.png)
![NEW CHALLENGE, NEW TEAM MEMBERS: Every season, VEX creates a new game that robotics team members are faced with and have to build a robot to compete in. This year’s game forces students to create a robot that is able to stack rings onto mobile goals in order to score points. The change in games each season is something that robotics teacher Audrea Moyers appreciates.
“One of the things that I like about VEX is that they have a new problem to solve every year,” she said. ¨Even though the equipment’s the same, they have to analyze the game, and they have to come up with solutions that are unique that year. They are using their knowledge from prior years, but they have to kind of redesign a problem.”
As returning teams were faced a new game, some new teams and members had to adapt to a uncommon playing field and game.
“Three of our four teams were competing for the first time this year, and they had very different experiences match to match, so I think they learned a lot,¨ she said. ¨It’s hard just watching a video online to know how it’s actually going to be in person, so they all learned a lot about what gameplay is like, how to work with an alliance partner [and] how to adapt during the day to changes.”](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/IMG_9283-1-1200x800.jpg)
Brea Olinda High School canceled all classes and on-campus activities following a shooting threat that remains under investigation by the Brea Police Department and Brea Olinda Unified School District (BOUSD) on Nov. 13
The threat, — an Instagram Story of an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a handgun, with text reading, “look out for tomorrow, @bohs” — was reported to BOHS and BOUSD around 6 p.m. on Nov. 12.
The post had circulated amongst BOHS student group chats and reposted on social media platforms Instagram and Snapchat.
The original post was “quickly” deleted, complicating local authority’s efforts to trace its origins and determine if the threat is credible or non-credible, according to the Brea Police Department and BOUSD.
According to Brinda Leon, BOUSD superintendent, BOUSD shared the image with the Orange County Intelligence Assessment Center, which collaborates with law enforcement and private and public sectors to gather information and assess threats to public safety.
Unlike a previous threat on Sept. 15 that was deemed non-credible and did not affect school schedules, this situation, where authorities have not yet definitively ascertained the credibility of the threat, prompted the first school shut down since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
“This decision [to close BOHS] was made in collaboration with the Brea PD out of an abundance of caution,”Joey Davis, BOHS principal, said in an email sent to all staff at 8:49 p.m. on Nov. 12. Teachers were advised to stay home and continue instructional activities online, either via Google Classroom posts or on Zoom.
Previous threats of violence against the school — including a bomb threat in December 2007, and shooting threats in April 2017 and February 2023 — were investigated, but deemed not credible.
At 9:09 p.m., BOUSD sent a press release to the community that read, “Ensuring the safety and well-being of students, staff, and the community is the school’s highest priority.”
In a Parent Square notice to BOHS families, Davis informed parents that all bus routes to BOHS would be shut down due to the campus-wide closure. He also noted that students facing food insecurity could contact the District Office for assistance.
All on-campus classes and school activities scheduled for Nov. 13 were canceled, including dress rehearsal for this week’s dance concert, practices for CIF-playoff teams cross country and boys’ water polo, and auditions for Brea’s Got Talent.
All BOHS staff were invited to join a Zoom meeting from their homes for an update by Davis, Leon, and School Resource Officer Steven Wulff at 8 a.m. on Nov. 13
As of 11:40 a.m., the investigation is ongoing.
This story was originally published on The Wildcat on November 13, 2024.