GROTON, Conn. – Fitch High School’s most recent football game against Norwich Free Academy was postponed a day due to safety concerns.
The Groton Town Police Department published a statement on this issue for immediate release, revealing that multiple threats were made on social media at NFA, and later at Fitch. Those threats were shared with Fitch’s Student Resource Officer (SRO), Scott Bousquet. The posts were made by individuals who are not associated with Fitch High School, according to the police department. The decision was made by the Groton Town Police Department and NFA to postpone the game as a precautionary measure, out of an “abundance of caution”.
A 6:04 p.m. post on ParentSquare, Groton Public School district’s main communication system, from Principal Matthew Brown on Thursday explained the decision to push back the game to Oct. 18, 2024, instead of Oct. 17, 2024. He also explained new safety parameters that will be in place in conjunction with the Groton Town Police Department, leaving out key details of what exactly the threat was.
Brown’s statement on ParentSquare.The post revealed the new and increased security measures the school and police department plan to take to protect students, such as limiting access to the game with each Varsity player choosing up to four spectators to be let in, and only students who verify their identity with PowerSchool or Student IDs will be let in.
The JV Football game was delayed to Saturday.
Below is a transcript of the police press release regarding the postponement of the game.
Groton Police Investigate Threat to Fitch High School Football Game
On Thursday, October 17, 2024 at approximately 1:45 p.m., Groton Police received information from Norwich Free Academy security regarding concerns surrounding the upcoming Fitch vs. N.F.A. High School football game scheduled for 6:00 p.m. that evening. As a result, additional staffing was assigned to the game.
Later in the afternoon, additional safety concerns arising from social medial posts led school officials, in collaboration with Groton Town Police and representatives from N.F.A., to postpone the game. This precautionary measure was taken out of an abundance of caution in order to allow officials time to institute control measure and safety protocols prior to holding the game.
It is important to note that students brought these concerns to the attention of the Fitch High School Resource Officer. It appears those concerns were the result of social media posts by individuals who are not associated with Fitch High School nor this event.
From Chief L. J. Fusaro – “We encourage students, parents, and citizens who are made aware of concerning posts and potential threats they view on social media to immediately bring them to attention of public safety and/or school officials. This simple act can help identify bad actors and help deter and prevent disruption of events. We applaud these students for having the courage and concern to connect with their SRO to help prevent potential problems at yesterday’s game.”
Fitch High School has re-scheduled the event for 4:00 p.m. on Friday October 18th, with additional police and security officials on hand. Below is a message from Fitch High School Principal Matthew Z. Brown:
In collaboration with the police department and representatives from NFA, we decided to postpone the game due to the serious nature of these concerns. The Fitch-NFA game will be held today at 4pm at Fitch. Attendees must adhere to the following parameters:
- Each varsity player will identify four family members to be their spectators. These spectators must still purchase a ticket.
- Every listed spectator must have a photo ID along with their ticket. If you are not listed, you will not be admitted to the game.
- Only NFA and Fitch students will be admitted with a current school ID. Students from both schools will be checked in by their school administrator at their designated gate. Fitch will be checked in at the upper gate and NFA will be checked in at the lower gate. All Fitch and NFA Students are welcome to the game and do not need to be invited by a player.
- Tickets will still be available on GoFan: https://gofan.co/event/1701500?schoolId=CT17460.
- Tickets already purchased will be validated on GoFan to accommodate the date change.
- The concession stand will be open.
We thank you for your cooperation and understanding to protect everyone’s safety.
