Student Stabs Teacher and Two Classmates at Warrenton Middle School

A male student stabbed a teacher and two classmates inside a classroom at Black Hawk Middle School in Warrenton, Missouri, at about 7:55 a.m. CT on Thursday, November 12, 2026. Police arrested the student nearby shortly after the attack, and police said there is no threat to the public.

Inside the classroom

The attack happened during the first hour of classes. Superintendent Gregg Klinginsmith said the student was late to class and stabbed the teacher almost immediately after arriving. Warrenton police said the student used a knife with a blade of 4 to 5 inches.

Klinginsmith said his own son was among the injured students. The boy was stabbed in the hand. Klinginsmith said the boy had been targeted in the chest but dodged. No names of the injured students were published by the sources, and police released no information about the suspect, who is a student at the school.

Injuries and hospital treatment

One student was airlifted to a St. Louis children's hospital, Cardinal Glennon. The teacher was taken to a hospital by ambulance. Both were initially in serious condition. A second student suffered superficial wounds.

By early afternoon, the picture had improved. The airlifted student was stable, and the teacher had been discharged from the hospital. The reports did not give a later condition for the student with superficial wounds.

Arrest and the clearing of the school

Police arrested the suspect nearby shortly after the attack. He remains in custody. Police said there is no threat to the public, and they released no further information about the student in custody.

All classrooms at the school had been cleared by 10:41 a.m. The Warren County R-III district dismissed all schools at 12:41 p.m. Black Hawk Middle School sports were canceled for the day.

The school and the return to classes

Black Hawk Middle School enrolls nearly 700 students in grades six through eight. Klinginsmith said the school has no metal detectors. Classes were set to resume on Friday, with counseling available.

The district response closed every school early on Thursday, not only the middle school where the attack happened. For families, the clearest facts by Thursday afternoon were the arrest, the end of any public threat, and the improved condition of the two people taken to hospital in serious condition.