Practical PR: Ensuring Safety is Not Just a Drill
By Jill S. Browning
Families trust that their child is safe when they head off to school each day. To preserve that trust, school leaders must do everything within their control to ensure safety. At Community High SD 99 in Downers Grove, school board members have always served as champions of safety and supported several crucial safety initiatives throughout the years.
People Power
Security personnel are essential to the safe operation of our buildings, and the District 99 school board approved adding members to and restructuring security teams. In addition to School Resource Officers (who are current police officers employed by the police department who work inside the schools as armed and plainclothed police officers), the district also employs retired police officers who lead security teams. These team leaders are also armed. Security works closely with administrators, deans, and counselors to develop crime prevention strategies and provide input and leadership in the district’s crisis planning. Importantly, they also form relationships with students and present in classrooms on topics such as internet safety, drinking and driving, and healthy lifestyles.
The school board has also created extensive support systems for students in crisis or facing life challenges. Students who are struggling with social-emotional issues are supported by counselors, psychologists, social workers, and a student assistance coordinator. Every student is assigned to a team of experts dedicated to their well-being. Teams meet regularly to identify students who may need additional support, brainstorm interventions, and assess the effectiveness of the interventions.
We constantly remind our school community that every single person is essential for ensuring safety because people at risk often show signs or signals before an act of violence happens. At the top of every page of District 99 websites is an icon (a red comment bubble), which leads to the Crisis Reporting and Resources page and a link to Safe2Help Illinois for students to connect with a trained crisis professional during a time of need.
Secure Facilities
A referendum approved by the District 99 school board and passed in 2017 by 62% of the community included building secured entrances and entry vestibules. Now, when visitors come during the school day, they must wait in vestibules while their government IDs are checked and visitor badges are issued. Once visitors are granted clearance, they are admitted into the building. All other doors, including classroom doors, are locked and secured after the start of each school day.
The school board also voted to install a rapid emergency response system called BluePoint. Blue police alarm pull-stations, similar to red fire alarm pull-stations, are strategically placed throughout the schools. When the alarm is activated, police first responders are immediately notified, loudspeakers throughout the buildings broadcast emergency information, and strobe lights are activated inside and outside the building. Video cameras throughout the buildings reinforce the high level of safety.
Other preparedness features include the implementation of emergency response kit boxes for Narcan, Epipen, Stop the Bleed Kits, and AED machines throughout school buildings. Staff members receive training on these medical and life-saving devices.
Become the Source for Trusted News
Communication is critical in a crisis. We tell our families that we will always inform them in advance of a lockdown test or drill. In the case of an actual emergency, students, families, and staff members will automatically receive school and emergency email alerts. The district’s communication platform allows us to instantly deliver text, phone, and email messages so that families are informed of essential information at a moment’s notice. We also ask that families use caution when referencing social media channels during a crisis, as these can be sources of misinformation and rumors.
Constant Preparation
District 99 evaluates and modifies safety and security plans as an ongoing practice. A Safety Task Force, which includes community police, fire, and school personnel, meets regularly to recommend changes in practices, personnel, facilities, and technology to make schools safer. Also, each year, staff and students participate in training sessions and drills to prepare for worst-case scenarios. Staff members participate in an annual emergency lockdown/ violent intruder simulation to practice response to such an event. Working with police and other emergency response professionals, District 99 trains its staff members to deploy A.L.I.C.E. (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate) emergency response techniques.
From putting the right people and procedures in place to reinforcing facilities, ensuring that schools are as safe as they can be is essential. Communicating early and often about safety measures builds trust and provides community members with the reassurance they deserve during these challenging times.