DALLAS _ A 15-year-old student injured in a shooting Monday at Italy High School is making her way to recovery, Italy Independent School District Superintendent Lee Joffre said at a news briefing Tuesday morning.
"It is an amazing demonstration of her strength that she was able to survive this," Joffre said, adding that the girl was "sending a message of recovery and strength."
The victim's family identified her as Noelle "Cricket" Jones, WFAA-TV reported.
Noelle was flown to Parkland Memorial Hospital after the shooting in the city south of Dallas on Monday morning. Joffre said Tuesday that she was doing well, telling jokes and reading him a poem Monday night in the hospital.
Students at Italy High returned to school Tuesday. The campus reopened after the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives did a sweep of the premises to provide "extra assurance" that the school was ready for students to return, Joffre said.
A 16-year-old boy is suspected to have shot Noelle in the school's cafeteria around 8 a.m. Monday with a .380-caliber handgun. He was arrested outside soon afterward.
The suspect is being held on two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Ellis County and District Attorney's Office. Police have not released his name.
A GoFundMe page set up to help with medical expense says that Noelle was shot multiple times, resulting in injuries that "range from a bullet lodged in her neck, another removed from her abdomen to a foot of unrepairable small intestine having to be removed." The fund has raised more than $5,000.
Noelle's father, TJ Jones, told WFAA that Monday was Noelle's first ROTC drill with the Civil Air Patrol and she was excited to be in uniform. Jones said the suspect had been to their home multiple times, but as far as he knew, his daughter was not dating the boy.
Joffre, the superintendent, responded to questions Tuesday about whether the suspect had disciplinary issues before the shooting.
"A school district can't speak specifically regarding student discipline, but I can assure you that I have confidence that our administration always addresses the Texas education code appropriately," Joffre said.
The district provided grief counselors Tuesday to help affected students and staff.
"We're looking forward to recovering from this and learning from it and moving forward," Joffre said.
The suspect is scheduled for an initial court hearing Wednesday, according to the district attorney's office.
