A Jefferson City Public Schools middle-school student is facing disciplinary action after walking away from the group he was with while on a tour of the St. Louis Holocaust Museum on Thursday.
School District Spokesman Amy Berendzen said no Amber Alert was ever issued because the 15-year-old boy walked away on his free will, so this was considered a runaway case.
"In situations such as this, students face 10 days suspension, pending a hearing with the superintendent," Berendzen said. "The district is reviewing policy after this incident, but nothing appears awry in what the staff did.
"The child took the opportunity to go away," she continued. "This student made statements to other students on the field trip that he didn't want to go back to his living situation."
Berendzen said this student is a resident of the Prenger Family Center and has been attending school every day.
"Talking with the staff, the boy liked school and looked forward to going to school," she said.
Berendzen also said they are still not certain how the boy got back to Central Missouri, knowing only that he ended up in Columbia on Thursday night after last being seen with the group in St. Louis.
"His legal guardian is the state, so that's who we are allowed to communicate with," she said. "This was a scary situation, but thankfully officials at the museum, the police and Prenger all teamed up to work together and it resulted in a positive situation. It was scary what could have happened."
"The boy is in protective custody, as is any child that comes to us," said Prenger Director Michael Couty. "When they come to us they are wards of the court, placed with us because they have behavioral issues in their home, so we work with them so they can return back to community, either to their parents or to a guardian that the state appoints."
As far as contact with their families, Couty said some of their residents have contact and some don't.
"Some have supervised visits, and some don't," he said. "It's all determined by the children's division as to how visits should go based upon why they were put into protective custody."
Couty said there were no signs this boy, who is from Mid-Missouri, would do something like this.
"I just think it was an impulsive decision and it happened, not a planned event," he said. "We don't think he had contact with any family that would make him take this action."