An Iowa high school associate principal had to be hospitalized after he intervened in a student fight and was hit, school officials said.
David Perrigo, an associate principal at Valley High School in West Des Moines, was taken to a hospital Thursday after being knocked to the ground, The Des Moines Register reported. School officials haven't released details of his injuries.
One student involved in the fight has been arrested and three others face arrest, WQAD-TV reported. All are charged with disorderly conduct.
The fight was a continuation of a fight that started earlier in the week off school grounds, West Des Moines Community Schools spokeswoman Laine Mendenhall-Buck told The Register. School administrators met with one of the students before classes started Thursday to try to defuse the situation.
"Unfortunately, other students engaged in an altercation with the student shortly after the meeting," said a letter sent to parents. "Valley Associate Principal David Perrigo intervened to break up the fight and was injured as a result."
A Snapchat video of the fight appears to show a group of students exchanging blows. Perrigo steps in between the students. Then, he appears to be struck and is knocked to the ground, where he lies motionless until another person comes to his aid.
"My understanding is the injury is the result of incidental contact," Mendenhall-Buck said. "It was not anything geared directly towards Mr. Perrigo."
No students were injured in the incident, Mendenhall-Buck said. The school maintained a “heightened police presence” through the end of the day.
Perrigo didn’t return to work Friday but is expected to return Monday.
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