SALT LAKE CITY — Over one hundred students at West High School in Salt Lake City held a walkout Friday to support their former principal and to raise awareness over what they call a sense of fear about safety within the hallways.
The Salt Lake City School District placed Principal Jared Wright on leave last week, although no reason was given for the move.
During the walkout, students gathered at the front of the school, listening to speakers and chanting "justice for Jared."
Those involved in the lockout say they're scared for their safety at West High and want answers for Wright's departure.
"Students are just confused," said student body president Asher Lucas. "We don't know what's going on, and a lot of people start spreading rumors, but at the same time, teachers and administrators are just, they're visibly scared. I'm assuming they're scared for their jobs, but they won't say anything."
Lucas added that students feel even less safe on campus following Wright's removal.
Video below shows West High student walkout to protest safety, principal removal:
"There's just a sense of fear at West High School because no one knows what's going on, and this is at a time amidst a school safety crisis at our school," he said. "You can't go into the bathrooms, they're overrun with drugs. The school feels like a prison because of the metal detectors."
Immediately following the walkout, the district released a statement that denied Wright's removal had anything to do with concerns he may have had about safety at the school.
"While we cannot discuss details surrounding personnel matters," the statement read, "we want to dispel any misinformation related to this topic and state clearly that the two are unrelated."
Student Body President Asher Lucas shares what makes West High so scary for students:
Last month, the school's teachers and faculty held a protest of their own over campus safety, claiming the district has not seriously addressed their concerns. In November, a 16-year-old was arrested after another teen was shot in the school's parking lot.
"We feel like we get lucky most days, and we got really lucky that day," said teacher Holly Reynolds last month, "and we just can't live with that, with getting lucky anymore because we're worried that there's going to be a time where we don't get lucky."
Teachers share their safety concerns at West High School below:
Before heading back to class Friday, students expressed how they simply want answers about the district's plans to keep them safe and what happened to their former principal.
"I want to understand the truth because there's just no way, that if you truly did something bad, that they would not release it," said student Eli Jergensen.
The district said it is working with school administrators to address student and faculty safety concerns.
"We take the safety of our West High School community – and of all our school communities – very seriously," the district's statement continued. "We are fully in support of our employees bringing forward their safety concerns, as we all share the same goal of having our students and employees learn and work in the safest environments possible."