NORFOLK, Va. — Students at Norfolk Public Schools (NPS) had Monday off, due to the President's Day holiday.
However, some Little Creek Elementary families told 13News Now they are feeling concerned, nervous and hesitant as they embark on another school week, beginning Tuesday.
NPS said Thursday a teacher immediately alerted the school administration to report a student with a weapon, during dismissal.
Multiple parents recounted learning about a weapon confiscation by mass call, hours later after 5 p.m. on that day.
No one was hurt and police took the gun away after responding to the school. "Police arrived after children were home," an NPS spokeswoman said.
Maliq Collins has second and fourth-grade students who attend Little Creek. He told 13News Now it was while watching the news on Friday that he discovered the weapon was a handgun and that a 6-year-old's mother had been charged.
He said: "It's an angry feeling, because when were we going to know the truth or the weapon that was brought to school?"
Collins recalled having to navigate conversations about the incident with his 7 and 9-year-olds.
"It's kind of tough to explain to elementary school kids about guns being brought to school," he said. "They don't really want to go back to school. It's tough."
Heading into a new school week, he said he is eager to find out what happens next from the principal.
"We don't know what the plan of action is," said Collins. "How does this situation be prevented in the future?"
He said he is imploring administrators to answer the question, especially on the heels of a January 6 incident at Richneck Elementary School, across the water in Newport News.
In that case, police said it was also a 6-year-old student who brought a gun to school. The boy, however, is accused of opening fire in his first-grade classroom and injuring his teacher, Abby Zwerner.
While there are charges against the Little Creek parent in connection to Thursday's incident, police have not charged anyone in connection to the Richneck shooting at this time.
One day prior to the incident at Little Creek, NPS administrators said in a work session that they are in the process of buying free-standing weapons detection systems.
"This system, I think, is going to be very great for us. It's going to speed up the process, allow us to do more inspections, and to reduce the number of items coming to the schools. We especially don't want weapons coming into our schools," said Director of Public Safety & Security Services Tim Mallory.
While the timeline for installation in each school is unclear, parents like Collins hope it will happen sooner than later.
"Who knows how long the child could have had the gun on him before the teacher found out?" he questioned.
In a previous statement to 13News Now, a Norfolk Public Schools spokeswoman responded with the following, regarding parental concerns over lagging communication.
"A message was sent out yesterday to all Little Creek Elementary School families. The incident happened at dismissal. Police arrived after children were home. If a parent or guardian did not receive the message, they should check their contact information is up-to-date with the schools."
Additionally, when asked about policy staff members need to follow, if a teacher discovered a handgun on a student or a perceived threat, the spokeswoman answered with this statement.
"NPS administrators and staff are trained in safety and security protocols and the division works closely with Norfolk Police."