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Scenes from Moore on Monday:
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Plaza Towers Elementary, the school in Moore where seven children died in a tornado strike today, has more than 400 students, most of them low-income.
Three-fourths of the students are White and 15 percent are Hispanic.
Its students have generally scored above the state average on state standardized tests. Its 20 or so teachers have an average of a little over 10 years’ experience, slightly less than the state average. Greatschools.org, a national site that profiles schools, rated the school eight out of 10. However, its letter grade from the state was a C.
On Google, people from around the country Monday night were posting notes on a Plaza Towers Elementary School page.
“Prayers for all members of the school & the community. Our hearts are breaking for you,” a person named Linda Ruhl said.
“Prayers from New Jersey. God bless you,” an unidentified user said.
“I lived through Sandy … Be strong! Stay strong! My thoughts are with you guys,” said another.
One person raised questions about whether children in schools are adequately protected.
“I don’t understand why all schools in tornado alley don’t have some kind of underground bunker.”
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