Middle school students return to class for the 1st time since Iowa school shooting

High school students in Perry, Iowa, have returned to classes for the first time since a 17-year-old opened fire in a shared cafeteria, killing two people and wounding six others

PERRY, Iowa — High school students in Perry, Iowa, returned to classes Thursday for the first time since a 17-year-old opened fire in a cafeteria, killing two people and wounding six others.

On a cold, foggy morning, students filed into Perry Middle School. They passed welcome signs and were greeted by teachers and administrators, who hugged them as they walked through the doors.

The school district, about 40 miles northwest of Des Moines, canceled all classes after the Jan. 4 shooting at the cafeteria shared by the middle and high schools. The attack killed 11-year-old sixth-grader Ahmir Jolliff and seriously injured high school principal Dan Marburger, who died on January 14.

Six other students and staff were injured. The shooter, Dylan Butler, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Students at Perry Elementary, about a mile away, returned to their campus earlier this week. It is expected that secondary school students will be able to return to classes on Wednesday.