Quick Take
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the identity of the 18-year-old victim of a fatal shooting at a house party in Boulder Creek on Saturday. One school administrator wrote that the victim “was recognized by teachers for possessing an upbeat attitude toward life and school and for being an enjoyable student.” A teenage boy has been arrested as a suspect in the shooting.
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An 18-year-old student is dead and a teenage boy is under arrest after a fatal shooting at a house party in Boulder Creek over the weekend.
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office arrested the suspect — a juvenile — Sunday afternoon.
At around 10 p.m. Saturday, multiple calls reported a shooting at a party on the 1000 block of Brimblecom Road in Boulder Creek. Deputies found one victim on the scene suffering from a gunshot wound. He died from the injuries.
The sheriff’s office confirmed to Lookout that the victim is Rowan Parham, 18, of Soquel. In a social media post, the sheriff’s office said because the suspect is a minor it wouldn’t be releasing additional details.
Several local school districts and the County Office of Education (COE) sent messages to families Sunday to remember the victim and to offer resources to those affected.
County Superintendent of Schools Faris Sabbah said the student was attending Oasis High School.
Oasis, which has a small campus at Cabrillo College, is part of the Santa Cruz County Office of Education’s Alternative Education program and is a popular independent study option.
The program emphasizes its “personalized learning” approach and is geared for students who want to get a jump on college courses while concurrently finishing up high school coursework. It has a campus in Watsonville as well.
“We’re devastated by the news,” Sabbah said. “We have spoken to the teachers who work with him and [they said] he was a diligent, hardworking student. He’s going to be missed very much.”
Director Johnny Rice sent out a message to the Alternative Education Program’s families addressing the tragedy and offering resources.
In the message, he wrote that the victim “was recognized by teachers for possessing an upbeat attitude toward life and school and for being an enjoyable student to work with who was easy to talk to. Our hearts and our strength go out to this student’s family.”
On Sunday, superintendents from the Santa Cruz City Schools and the San Lorenzo Valley Unified School districts sent messages to families offering support.
“[W]e are grieving with families, students, staff and community in the wake of this violence — the latest cruelty in an ongoing national epidemic of senseless gun violence,” wrote SCCS Superintendent Kris Munro.
She wrote that the victim was previously a Soquel High School student.
While neither the suspect nor the victim attend San Lorenzo Valley Unified Schools, according to San Lorenzo Valley Superintendent Chris Schiermeyer, many students in the district knew both.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family who senselessly lost a child at a young age and also to all of our students and families impacted by this tragic event,” he wrote in a message to families Sunday.
“We understand that Monday will be a somber day and that students will be processing the incident in various ways as they return to school,” he wrote. “Our education community will be there to support your student if they need to talk to someone; they can reach out to anyone on their site for support.”
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office had not returned a request by the time of publication.
Resources shared by COE, Santa Cruz City Schools
Spokesperson Nick Ibarra said that COE counselors and mental health professionals were present at at least seven school sites, at COE’s Alternative Education programs and at SLVUSD schools Monday morning to support students and staff.
In addition, the school districts’ school counselors were also offering support at their respective sites.
“We are closely coordinating this response with all school districts, a crisis response team from Santa Cruz County Behavioral Health, and community partners including Encompass Community Services and Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance,” he said.
Resource: Coping with violence: What parents can do
Resource: Talking to children about violence
Resource: Guides & tools for coping & talking about violence with children
Resource: Psychological first aid for parents (Spanish)
Resource: Psychological first aid for parents (English)
Resource: Supporting youth in grief; guide for parents and caregivers (Spanish)
Resource: Supporting youth in grief; guide for parents and caregivers (English)
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FOR THE RECORD: This story has been updated with the identity of the shooting victim.
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