Ralph Yarl described as ‘excellent student and talented musician’ at Staley High School

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - After a Staley High School student was injured in a shooting on Thursday, North Kansas City Schools has released a statement to its district family.

Dr. Dan Clemens, the North Kansas City Schools superintendent, stated that he is experiencing the same “anger, frustration, shock and disbelief” that many of the families in the school district have felt.

Students at the high school scheduled a Unity Walk Tuesday morning in support of the junior student.

Unity Walk at Staley High School
WATCH LIVE: Hundreds of students participate in a Unity Walk at Staley High School following the shooting of junior student Ralph Yarl. Previous coverage: https://bit.ly/3MSfC7K
Posted by KCTV5 News Kansas City on Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Ralph Yarl was trying to pick up his siblings from a house Thursday evening in the 1100 block of NE 115th Terrace. Instead, he ended up at NE 115th Street. After knocking at the door, he was shot.

Police said on Sunday they held the shooter for 24 hours and did not charge him. Police added that they needed a statement from the victim.

Clemens’ statement is below:

We are devastated to learn one of our students was involved in a horrific incident last week. Ralph Yarl, a junior at Staley High School, was shot after mistakenly arriving at the wrong address to pick up two younger siblings. Our thoughts are with the Yarl family, and I know I speak for all of us when we wish him a full and quick recovery. Ralph is an excellent student and talented musician. He maintains a stellar GPA while taking mostly college level courses. While he loves science and hopes to pursue that career path, his passion is music. Thankfully, we know he is now recovering alongside family.
I know that many of you share the same anger, frustration, shock and disbelief that I am experiencing now. We must allow time for the investigation to be completed. In the meantime, as educators, our focus is on supporting Ralph, his family, our students and staff. Additional resources are available at Staley and throughout our other schools this week. We are prepared and ready to serve.
Dr. Dan Clemens