Teachers wanted Nikolas Cruz to change schools for mental health help

PARKLAND, Fla. — Teachers and counselors at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School hoped a transfer to an alternative school would provide mental health services for Nikolas Cruz after his behavior and discipline problems increased in 2016. 

Broward County Superintendent Robert Runcie said Cruz’s situation at Douglas had deteriorated so much so that his counselors and teachers decided to refer him out of the school in early 2017. They hoped he would return to Cross Creek School, an alternative program with smaller classes and a more comprehensive offering of mental health services.

“He declined,” Runcie said. “When a kid turns 18, we can’t force an adult to receive those services.”

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