BSES SAFETY

MEETING 9/16/14

“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building

the new.” Socrates

BSES 2014-2015 Safety Committee

Members • “All school principals are asked to immediately

appoint a school safety committee to meet a minimum of once a month. Their duties will include surveying the facility for any safety hazards and to take actions needed to correct them.” – Dr. Dorwin Howard

• Rhonda Brogden – Chairperson / 2nd Grade Dr. George McFarley- GCPS Director of Security

• Monica Deluck – KindergartenPolice Chief Danny Roberts-Butner Public Safety• Susan Romnek – Kindergarten• Pam Frazier – 1st Grade Teacher Assistant• Sandra Lawson – 3rd Grade• Cathy Eudy – 4th Grade• Shannon Norton – 5th Grade• Robert Shook – PE• Darryl Curtis – Head Custodian• Meredith Mills – Assistant Principal

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Goals for Today’s Meeting

•Goal #1• *To explore the

need for changes in the afternoon dismissal procedures/traffic patterns

•Goal #2• *To identify

possible solutions for safety upgrades at BSES

Board Policy 1510/4200/7270

• Closed Campus Policy for GCPS for 2014-2015 - The campuses of all Granville County Public Schools shall be closed during the 2014-2015 school term.

• “Students must be personably supervised while in the care and custody of the school system. This includes: during school hours, including while in class, between classes, on the playground and during recess or lunch periods, during authorized school field trips, and on school buses. Reasonable precautions should be taken to assure the safety of students on school grounds and on buses, before, during, and after school.”

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An Important Question

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• The Question:• Do we want to be proactive or reactive? • REACTIVE = MAKE CHOICES BASED ON IMPLUSE• Do we want to wait for one horrible incident to take

appropriate action?• PROACTIVE = MAKE CHOICES BASED ON VALUES• Do we want to prevent one horrible incident because we

value our children?•  •  •  

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• :

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• I AM THE FORCE

The Answer

• The Answer:

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• PROACTIVE = TAKING RESPONSIBILITY

• I AM THE FORCE

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• 80+ more students this year than last year.

• When adults are walking to the sidewalk and taking students from teachers, it is difficult to enforce restraining orders, custody issues, and prevent unauthorized people from taking children.

• Students are running out in traffic to meet parents.

• Students are stepping off sidewalk into the way of traffic.

• Parents pulling around other cars as students are loading into cars.

• Parents/Guardians/People are entering bus lot and taking students off buses.

• Teachers are not able to identify parents/grandparents/aunts/uncles/babsitters.

• Studies have been done that show elementary age students will go with an adult that he/she does not know.

1 Immediate Concern

Identified = Afternoon

Dismissal of Students

AUTOBIOGRAPHY INFIVE SHORT CHAPTERSFrom There’s A Hole in My SidewalkBy Portia Nelson II walk down the street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I fall in.I am lost…I am helpless.It isn’t my fault.It takes forever to find a way out. 

III walk down the same street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I pretend I don’t see it.I fall in again.I can’t believe I am in the same place.But, it isn’t my fault.It still takes a long time to get out. 

IIII walk down the same street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I see it is there.I still fall in.It’s a habit.My eyes are open.I know where I am.It is my fault. I get out immediately. 

IVI walk down the same street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I walk around it. VI walk down another street.

Suggestions from Safety Committee

• Revise the way cars come in and out…in other words, reroute pattern of traffic.

• Parents remain in cars… do not park and get out to get child.

• Designate front of building as fire lane – No Parking at any time.

• Staff load children into car.

• Have a solid system – maybe signs / tags in cars / cones / calling out names.

• See pictures, video, and hear about another schools’ dismissal (Mt. Energy Elementary School) – Shook, Lawson, Brogden

Suggestions Taken from Parents

• Designate area for parents to pick up students and designate a place for parents who want to wait in the car to have child placed in car.

• Continue to look at other schools’ afternoon dismissal.

• Use tags in cars to identify students.

• Use lunch numbers as a way to identify students.

• No change – teachers know who is picking up students

• Revise the way cars come in and out…in other words, reroute pattern of traffic. (Parent brought in draft of pattern.)

• Have students remain in school building; students called out to the cone and placed in cars by staff.

Thanks for coming!

Next Meeting Date: To Be AnnouncedTime: Evening – after 5 pm