Grand Island High School student walkout ends in physical altercation, officials say

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Grand Island Public Schools released a statement following a physical altercation during an off-campus student walkout on Monday.

According to Superintendent Matt Fisher, approximately 150 Grand Island High School students participated in the walkout to express their views on ICE activity.

The protest began around 1:30 p.m., with students leaving campus on foot and walking through several locations across the Grand Island community.

At school dismissal, Fisher said a small group of students who participated in the walkout were peacefully gathering with their signs on College Street, across the street from West Lawn Elementary.

While there, a community patron approached the group and engaged in a verbal argument with the students, escalating into a physical altercation, according to Fisher.

Fisher said the Grand Island Police Department intervened to de-escalate the situation, and the investigation is currently ongoing.

“We are disappointed that one small moment of this ‘walk-out’ demonstration ended in angry arguing and physical altercations,” Fisher said. “We as a community must remember that our students are watching us and that we are in the work of caring for each other together.”

Channel 8 has reached out to the Grand Island Police Department for more information on the incident.