<p>Just once I wish we could hear the responsible parties in one of these tragedies say “We are devastated by the events that have transpired. Some bad things happened on our watch and we will not rest until we know that every single student in our school experiences school as a safe environment. There may have been larger societal forces at work, but we will not be satisfied until the part that we can control, the world within the walls of the school building, is such that never again will a student be demeaned, threatened or afraid to come and learn. We are human, too, and we hurt over the death of this student. We are committing ourselves to this mission here today. We understand that we can and we must fulfill this mission.”</p>