Children Leave School Unnoticed

Anthony Marlatt walked out of his elementary school with his backpack, right out the front doors. The problem? He is 5 years old and he walked out during school hours.

His mom, Sarah Marlatt dropped him off shortly after 9 a.m. Per school procedure, an escort is supposed to walk children to their class. However, the adult escort saw the child walking towards the classroom, so she returned to her office instead of making sure that he went inside the classroom. The boy went to the restroom instead, and went out the back door of the school looking for his mom in the parking lot. When he couldn't find her, he started to walk. He then crossed a busy street and kept walking until a local resident noticed the boy walking alone and called the school, who was already aware that he was missing.

When they boy didn't make it to his class, the school called Sarah, but was not able to get in touch with her until 10 a.m. He then crossed a busy street and kept walking until a local resident noticed the boy walking alone and called the school, who was already aware that he was missing.

In related news, WCVB News reported that another 6-year-old boy disappeared from his Michael E. Capuano Early Childhood Center kindergarten class in Somerville. The boy's mother dropped him off and the boy followed her home. He walked for about 20 minutes before he surprised his mother. She had not yet left for work. arlier this week and walked home alone, a school official said.

Somerville Public Schools Superintendent Tony Pierantozzi says, "We take full responsibility." He also added that parents are supposed to notify staff members when dropping off their children, and the mother did not on that day.

The school is now placing staff members at every door to prevent this from happening again.

These two stories are not isolated incidences. Doing a Google search, I came across too many news reports of young children leaving their schools without anyone noticing. I am just thankful that these two boys were not picked up by a predator. Schools need to do a better job at ensuring their students safety.

Sources:

KSAT 12 News: 5-Year-Old Walks Out Of School, http://www.ksat.com/news/22125350/detail.html

The Boston Globe: Somerville Kindergartener Walks Out Of School Unnoticed, http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/09/somerville_kind.html