Auroraadvocate.com - Administrators and police team up on school security

by Ken Lahmers

Editor

Aurora -- The local schools and police department are striving to enhance safety for students, and a community forum Nov. 20 is just one of ways of addressing that.

The district will host the forum for parents and interested residents at 7 p.m. in Harmon School. Aurora Sgt. John Bergoine will discuss student and community safety.

"The Board of Education has continuously been working to improve the safety and security of our students over the years, and has always made it top priority," said Superintendent Russ Bennett.

"Recent events highlight the fact the Aurora community and world are constantly changing, unfortunately not always in positive ways. This has caused us to redouble our efforts to protect our students."

In a recent incident at Aurora High School, administrators removed a student who brought a weapon to school.

In another incident, an anonymous caller phoned in a message threatening the safety of students.

Although investigators believe the call to AHS was likely a prank, it nonetheless provided an opportunity for school officials and police to test a number of safety measures already in place.

In initial safety efforts, buzzer systems were added to all buildings in recent years, requiring visitors to request entrance.

THEN, DISTRICT officials installed fences on playgrounds at Miller and Craddock schools as an added barrier of protection for students.

In recent weeks, administrators have talked with students in all English classes about the weapon incident and the need to be vigilant and open when seeing anything of concern at a school.

Posters displayed in all buildings now prominently display the district's new Tipline, where students can anonymously report a safety concern.

Last week, an assembly at AHS featured Joel Penton, former Ohio State football player, who talked frankly about the importance of making good choices and that school safety is a serious issue for everyone.

Bennett said the administrators' link with the police department has become a vital partnership.

Police and school officials regularly share information about safety, and planned a recent drug sweep at the high school to ensure a drug-free learning environment.

For enhanced communication, Bennett said the district bought a radio system that will allow officials to communicate districtwide on an encrypted network.

This improved network comes on the heels of the installation of a districtwide phone system that permits teachers and staff to integrate building safety measures with those in place at the Aurora PD.

"CLEAR communication is the key to successfully carrying out a disaster plan," said Bennett.

When new construction starts in the spring at Harmon and Miller , Bennett explained the facilities will include cameras similar to those in place at Leighton and Craddock to allow for monitoring in and out of each building.

New, secure vestibules will be added to the buildings to ensure detection and safe monitoring of all visitors.

For added security, staffers in every district building now wear identification badges, and visitors are issued a pass only after requesting entrance to buildings via an intercom and registration at the office.

Bennett said he appreciates the increased presence of local police, who maintain a frequent, visible presence on buses and in the hallways.

Many officers are familiar to students, having established a rapport with them at an early age through the Safety Town program and up through the grades at assemblies where students learn about dangers of drugs, alcohol and bullying.

"Students need to be not only conscientious about safety, but to feel comfortable telling adults when they see danger," said Bennett. "Vigilant parents also play a key role in this important partnership."

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klahmers@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3155