Student and staff safety at ConVal School District
Student and staff safety at ConVal School District
By: Alan Edelkind – Dublin School Board Representative to ConVal School District
OVERVIEW OF SECURITY PROCESS
The safety of our students and staff within the ConVal School District is the overarching concern of all. There is nothing more important to your School Board and Administration then ensuring their safety. The information shared here will be general in nature so we can maintain the integrity of our security measures. In light of the horrific events in other school districts around our country (the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX. as the most recent) we felt it is important to provide this outline to our community.
The ConVal school District is composed of 9 towns and 11 school buildings.
ConVal School District administration works closely with the New Hampshire Department of Education Facilities Management Bureau (NH DOE) to ensure that our Emergency Operations Plans (EOP) are comprehensive, follow the state template and the content meets guidelines as set out in RSA 189:64 requirements.
There is a different EOP for each building (11 in all) representing the different needs in each building. Areas covered are fire, reverse evacuation bomb threats, internal and external threats etc. New Hampshire law requires 10 emergency drills be conducted each academic year, six fire evacuation drills and four all-hazard drills, one of these drills must be consistent with the response to an armed assailant. Evaluations of performance are also done.
Each school has an Emergency Management Team. EOP development is coordinated with local emergency
response agencies (police/fire), the community emergency management director (EMD), School Administrative Unit
(SAU) leadership, and other schools in the SAU. It is important that this synergy is in place so that all are
Knowledgeable in actions, needs and responsibilities
Each EOP is updated annually and sent to the DOE. Areas addressed in the review cover the entire spectrum of safety including fire safety, life safety review of intruder security procedures, lock down requirements
The DOE does a tri-annual visit to each school building to review compliance to plan.
The principal of each school is the Principle Incident Commander and is responsible for providing the plan which is reviewed by administration. The EOP is discussed with school staff periodically for understanding, comments and compliance.
All buildings remain locked during the school day, visitors are required to check in, and strategically placed security cameras have been installed to add an additional layer of security.
ENHANCEMENT.
The preparation and response to school security is ever-changing. New processes are constantly in need of evaluation as is the updating of current processes.
SRO
ConVal is currently in active discussion to engage a School Resource Officer (SRO) who is required to be a law enforcement individual. This individual will be resident in our high school and will be yet another individual responsible for ensuring the safety of the students and staff. It needs to be noted that not all threats are external in nature and that some can come internally. The SRO will be knowledgeable in both. We are looking for this law enforcement officer to be in place by the start of the 2022-2023 school year.
SECURITY
Your School Board and Administration will start discussion to determine the viability of engaging with an outside knowledgeable experienced organization (consultant) to perform a security audit and to recommend changes or enhancements as necessary.
We take security seriously and will do everything required to ensure the safety of our students and staff.