As posted on Sunday December 16, 2012
http://www.wallingford.k12.ct.us/page.cfm?p=13612
Dear Wallingford Parents Guardians and Community Members:
Yesterday, I met with parents regarding the Wallingford Public School’s response to the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut. The common concern shared was with the overall safety and compliance to procedures as visitors enter our buildings each day. The greatest takeaway for me from this meeting was the need to enforce a consistent approach to visitor procedures across the district. Additional safety recommendations were made that I will share with the Board of Education over the course of the next few weeks.
As a result of the meeting, I would like to take this opportunity to remind all of our families that we have a plan in place at each of our schools to handle emergency situations. We work with the Wallingford police and fire departments to prepare for these types of emergencies and regularly practice our safety procedures with students and staff through discussions and emergency exercises. While no amount of planning can guarantee that a tragedy such as this will not occur, we are doing everything we know to keep students and staff safe while at school.
It is imperative that parents assist us in enforcing our front office procedures when arriving on campus. Use front entrances only when visiting school. At the elementary and middle schools, use the buzzer system. Provide the clerk with your name and specific reason for visiting the school. Hold up your picture ID to the camera for verification. Upon entering the building, and check into the office immediately to receive a visitors badge. Do not forget to check out at the main office when leaving. At the high schools, check in with the greeter at the front entrance. Provide name, reason for visit, and identification. Receive a visitors badge and return to the greeter at the end of your visit to ensure we know you have left the building.
We require media, vendors, and delivery drivers to check in as well. Minor exits and entrances are locked throughout the day and should not be propped open by staff or parents for any reason. These are just a few of the procedures we must enforce to help ensure we know who is on campus at all times. Certainly in this day and age we can never be absolutely protected against all circumstances, but we do train our staff and rely on our parents to helps us ensure we enforce our own procedures. We also conduct safety drills and debriefings with local first responders regularly.
As we return to school this week, it is equally important for us to work with our staff and ensure they are prepared to support their students in difficult times. Staff is receiving information to ensure that they have the resources they will need to respond to student questions this week. We will also have our counselors and administrators ready on Monday morning to respond to students as needed.
Informational tips from the National Association of School Psychologists about what parents can do at a time like this are available on our website by clicking here. This is the approach that will be used with staff in the event the topic should arise in class this week. We are not holding special lessons or discussions on the tragedy unless the teacher feels the class needs to have that time to process.
As we all continue to remember the families and staff impacted by the events in Newtown, we must also to try to maintain focus on the sense of community that exists in Wallingford. Please know we will do all that we can to ensure the safety of our students and staff, and with your help we are confident we can do that. In doing so, we must all trust each other and help each other through this difficult time. In a collaborative spirit, we will grow as a community and district as a result of these tragic events.
Sincerely,
Salvatore F. Menzo, Ed.D.
Superintendent
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