Members of the Columbus City School board memorialized a student who was killed in a early morning mass shooting June 14 that injured seven others, and urged parents to help ensure their children stay safe.
Jusiah Mason, 18, a recent graduate of Beechcroft High School, was shot and killed Downtown on June 14, The Dispatch previously reported. At the end of the Columbus City Schools meeting on June 17, board Member Tina Pierce asked the board to hold a moment of silence for him.
“As we see that the city of Columbus is working very diligently to ensure that our students are safe, we echo the same concerns: parents — please know where your children are, check in with them,” Pierce said. “We see within this community a lot of things are happening to our young people, they all need to know that we value, we love and we appreciate them.”
Pierce urged parents to check in with their kids, including calling, texting and even surprising them by “rolling up on them.”
Mason was fatally shot in the early morning on June 14 near the intersection of South Ludlow and West Town streets near the Scioto River, Columbus police said. He died at a local hospital on June 15. Police said that just before the shooting, they were receiving reports of between 50 and 80 people gathered in the area.
Police investigate a June 14 shooting near the intersection of South Ludlow Street and West Town Street near the Scioto River in Downtown Columbus. Investigators remained at the scene that morning as marchers lined up for the Stonewall Columbus Pride March.
Six other people were injured by gunshot, and a seventh sustained non-gunfire injuries.
Board Vice President Jennifer Adair said that she was fortunate to have met Mason, who went by the nickname of “Juice.” Adair said that she met him while he was a part of a program that teaches students about “restorative practices,” which focuses on building relationships and preventing conflict.
“(Mason) had it rough, and he embraced what it meant and he embraced the other students and it was working for him,” Adair said. “It helped him get on track and helped him graduate. It’s devastating when we had a young man who was benefiting and turning his life around and he’s a part of tragedy.”
Board President said “we honor our students.”
“We honor the families our students come from in this community and our educators throughout this community who form a deep relationship with our students,” Board President Michael Cole said.
Cole also said that in addition to knowing where your kids are, to make sure you are monitoring them in the “virtual space.”
“There’s so much that occurs through virtual communication between our children … where things become out of accord and reckless and people get hurt,” Cole said.
Columbus police are asking for help from the public in investigating the shooting. Police asked anyone with video, photos or other digital evidence to upload it online for investigators at columbuspdoh.evidence.com.
Anyone with information on the shooting can contact the Columbus police Homicide Unit at 614-645-4730 or provide an anonymous tip Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-8477.
Dispatch reporter Bailey Gallion contributed to this report.
Cole Behrens covers K-12 education and school districts in central Ohio. Have a tip? Contact Cole at cbehrens@dispatch.com or connect with him on X at @Colebehr_report
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: CCS board members honor recent graduate killed in mass shooting