Wooster Middle School

1. Wooster Middle School Safety Procedures and Practices School Year 2012-2013 Jack Lynch- Principal

2. WMS Security Team • Mr. Lynch- Principal • Officer Voccola- SRO • Mr. Singletary- Asst. Principal • Mr. Davies- Head Custodian • WMS PTSA Executive Board: • Mrs. Sissy Kouvatas • Mrs. Chris Duffy • Mrs. Trish Young • Mrs. Danielle Dragone

3. Meeting Outline • Introduction to Parents • Overview of current procedures and practices • Recent changes to improve security • How parents can help keep students safe • Q & A (share concerns)

4. Current Procedures & Practices Arrival—School doors open at 8:05 a.m. • Students enter at either the main or lower bus loop doors depending on their grade level. • Entrances to the building are covered by staff members and administration in the morning and in the afternoon. • All WMS Staff buzz into the building in the am. • Cold & Inclement Weather: • Mr. Lynch stays with the WMS 8th graders in the entrance foyer & watches over them and the front entrance. Mr. Singletary does the same with the 7th graders in their entrance wing of the school.

5. Current Procedures & Practices Dismissal • Students are dismissed at 2:45pm. They go directly to their lockers. • Busses 1-5 are located in the lower bus loop. • Busses 6-9 and van transport is located at the main entrance bus loop. • Faculty monitor dismissal at each exit. • Mr. Lynch, Mr. Singletary and Officer Voccola monitor for unfamiliar cars, people, non-WMS students from a safety perspective.

6. Current Procedures & Practices Early Dismissal • If parents or guardians plan to dismiss their child before the school’s regular dismissal time, they must provide the school with prior written notice. • Parent, guardian or designee must produce photo identification for pick-up from the office. • We cross check the emergency form on file to be sure that parent, guardian or designee is authorized to pick up the student. • The parent, guardian or designee must sign out the student in the Early Dismissal Log. • The Dismissal Log is the WMS official record of early dismissals.

7. Current Procedures & Practices Visitors • We screen all visitors using a monitoring system. When visitors ring the bell, if they are unfamiliar we ask “May we help you?” Visitors can briefly state their business with the school. They are then allowed access to the building. • Visitors are buzzed into the school and directed to report to the main office. • If visit requires a stay, then visitor’s must sign the Visitor’s Log indicating their destination. • All visitors must wear a Visitor’s Badge. • All parent-teachers conferences are held in the main office during the school day.

8. Current Procedures & Practices School Safety Committee David Wooster Middle School has a Safety Committee. The committee oversees the following: • Building Security • Building Fire Drill and Lockdown procedures and drills • Troubleshoot general problems regarding safety and building maintenance issues. • The committee will meet on a monthly basis from January through June. The agenda will include items of concern regarding the safety and security of WMS students and staff.

9. Current Procedures & Practices Stratford Public Schools Crisis Manual • All classrooms and other ancillary staff have the Crisis Manualissued by the Stratford Public Schools. The Crisis Manual outlines the procedures to be followed in the case of various emergency situations and describes the roles and responsibilities of various staff. • The manual is reviewed annually with the faculty and staff with strong emphasis placed on the Fire Drill, Lockdown Drill and Stay Put Procedure. • Substitute teachers have full access to the Crisis Manual that is located in teacher’s desk of every classroom.

10. Current Procedures and Practices The Lockdown Drill Primarily used in the event we have an intruder inside or outside of the building. • We will practice the Lockdown Drill monthly. • Lockdown Drills will be scheduled at different times during the school day to create different scenarios.

11. Current Procedures and Practices The Lockdown Drill- Special Areas: The Wooster Safety Committee has met with and discussed lockdown procedures for special areas such as the cafeteria, gymnasium, auditorium, outdoors, and hallways with the Stratford PD. Students are trained and drills are conducted related to special area lockdown procedures during the school year.

12. BOE Parent Notification Alerts • Letter home to parents tomorrow afternoon with current powerschool contact information. • Update information on the form, check off which numbers/email you would like notification sent to (up to 3 numbers/emails per contact). • All numbers must be direct lines (no work extensions). • Return forms to the school on Monday 1/14. • Updates will be entered to powerschool. • A test of the system will occur on or about 1/26. • Any emergency contacts between now and then will use current information in powerschool.

13. WMS Parent Notification • In the event of an actual emergency: • WMS e-blast lists and paper notifications will be given to students afterthe lockdown is complete and the building is secure. • Phones will not be answered during the duration of the lockdown event (or drill). • Please be sure you have signed up for the team e-blast list for your team.

14. Current Procedures & Practices Fire Drill We are mandated to conduct at least 10 fire drills in a school year. All students and staff evacuate the building within 60-90 seconds. Stay Put Procedure We use this procedure in an event we have a special transport (ambulance) or if there is a potential danger in one part of the building, i.e. hall spills, medical emergency, etc.

15. Current Procedures & Practices • ID badges- All Faculty & Staff must wear a school ID badge. • Doors to the outside are locked- The administration, SRO, and custodial staff conduct routine checks. If we have a delivery, an adult will man the door. • Classroom doors are able to be locked by faculty- Teachers have their classroom key. In the event there is a substitute, the key is left in the main office for the substitute. Substitutes will have access to our school’s Crisis Manual. Teachers will direct substitutes to familiarize themselves with the Fire and Lockdown Drills. • Walkie-Talkies to Communication- The administrators, nurse, head custodian and main office staff are reachable anytime. Teachers are required to have a walkie-talkie with them during outdoor activities. • No student may open an outside door for anyone- at any time- during the school day. This is a mandatory requirement. • Team meetings with students and staff- Held periodically during the school year to discuss and review protocols. • Landscaping-Maintained so there is unfettered visual access to the building (All bushes near building cut down over last few years).

16. Recent Changes to Improve Security Arrival • All entrances to the school will remain locked so that the only access is the front entrance (swipe card access being discussed). Screening • We have stepped up our efforts in regards to screening visitors. Lockdowns • We will increase the number of times that we practice this particular drill. Safety Committee • A parent safety committee is being formed and will meet on a monthly basis.

17. Recent Changes to Improve Security The District will… • train new substitutes on school safety procedures. • purchase a new emergency notification system, which will provide both email and phone notification in the event of an emergency. • currently reassess each school’s evacuation route to be sure it’s appropriate. Work with town officials: • Stratford Police Department will increase police presence in and around schools. • The Mayor and Department of Public Works will assess all schools to put together a list of needed repairs as it relates to security. • The Mayor has created a Task Force.

18. How Parents Can Help Keep Students Safe Arrival • Please do not drop off your son or daughter before 8:00 a.m. There is no supervision before 8:00. Early Dismissal • Please send in a note if picking up your child early. Early notification is helpful and we can anticipate that you will visit the school. Early notification will allow us to get your child ready in advance. • Please try not to pick up your child 15 minutes before we are ready to dismiss the student body (Reason- busses are already in the traffic loop or are arriving and this causes safety concerns).

19. How Parents Can HelpKeep Students Safe Information • Please make sure your information on your Emergency Form is current, i.e. telephone numbers, etc. • Log onto the American Red Cross Website to get helpful tips on how to keep your child safe. • In the event of an emergency, Visit the Stratford Board of Education Website at http://www.stratfordk12.org • Tune into the following radio stations for up to minute information on schools—WICC 600 AM; WEBE 108 FM; WELI 960 AM and WEZN 99.9 FM • Television Stations—News 12; Channel 8& Channel 3 • Telephone Early Emergency Notification System (prior slide)

20. How Parents Can Help Keep Students Safe Parents, you may feel that some of our safety procedures and practices are somewhat of an inconvenience. However, they are designed to keep students, staff and the entire David Wooster Middle School learning community safe. We thank you for your continued support.

21. Parents: Your Voice You are invited to share any suggestions that you may have regarding securityby emailing me at lynchj@stratfordk12.org We will compile all suggestions and share them with the Central Office Safety Committee. Thank you.

22. Q & A We will now open the floor for questions or share concerns.