Students meet on anniversary of Ft. Gibson shooting

Students from nearly 70 Oklahoma schools attended the STOP, Students Taking On Prevention, Conference in Tulsa Wednesday.<br><br>It's a national peer education program designed to teach young people

Wednesday, December 6th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Students from nearly 70 Oklahoma schools attended the STOP, Students Taking On Prevention, Conference in Tulsa Wednesday.

It's a national peer education program designed to teach young people how to deter violence in their schools and communities.

Fort Gibson School Superintendent Steve Wilmoth addressed the conference a year after a student shot and wounded five of his classmates. Wilmoth says teachers were alert for problems, but are grateful there weren't any.

"We've really tried to downplay the situation from last year,â€ said Wilmoth. â€œOur staff and our students are really looking forward to Christmas this year - it kind of spoiled it for us last year. I think the attitude in Ft Gibson is really strong right now."

Seth Trickey, the boy charged in the shootings, is being held at the Rader Juvenile Detention Center. Wilmoth says he doubts Trickey will return to school in Fort Gibson.

"I just know from dealing with his parents, and they're great people, that they would be concerned about the impact it would have on the community," said Wilmoth.

Besides hearing from experts on violence, students learned how to collaborate with other community agencies to educate the public about warning signs of violence and ways to intervene.

Students say though school violence has declined, society is still saturated with conflict, often beginning in the family.

"TV, movies and media is a big part of it and I'd say just influences on students at school," said Westville Student Eric Winn.

Experts stressed the importance of inclusion and respect for everyone, especially students who don't fit in. Students swapped ideas for school projects.

"We tried to adapt the program to dating violence, and we brought in a lot of speakers who talked about domestic violence and their situations that they've had in their relationships," said Bokoshe Student Casey Wegert.

Wilmoth told students they play a key role in stopping violence. They say their eager to accept the challenge.