page-55.html
1117 NOVEMBER
56 / 80
communicate with your
child
. ask your
child
questions about
school
safety
. is there any area in their
school
where they do not feel safe? do they know what to do in case of emergency? do they have a trusted adult who they feel comfortable talking to in any emergency? louisiana?s department of homeland security encourages the community to report suspicious activity with the concept of ?if you see something, say something.? for east baton rouge parish
school
s, shamlin says their i care program?s ?be the one? curriculum enforces this idea. trained specialists, teachers, and counselors teach the ?be the one? curriculum encouraging
child
ren to be aware of their surroundings and to ?be the one? to notify a teacher if something seems amiss. discuss this idea with your
child
and ensure that he has a trusted adult at
school
who he feels comfortable talking to in any emergency. know how emergencies will be communicated to you. most
school
s have a
school
-wide alert system of some kind, and often the communication comes from multiple sources. in an emergency situation, your
school
may make phone calls, send emails or text by lauren labbé meher if you were asked to close your eyes and picture the place where you feel most safe and secure, most likely you would imagine your own home. as parents, we have measures in place; like teaching our
child
ren to lock the doors, to never open them to strangers, and to have a plan in case of a fire. ?ese measures are most likely second nature, yet their combined efforts are what makes our home feel like a safe-haven. but what about
school
safety
? have we put the same amount of effort and thought into the place where our
child
ren probably spend the most time, other than at home? know your
school
?s
safety
procedures. every
school
has policies and procedures on security and emergency preparedness. each
school
?s procedures may be slightly different so it is important for you to know your
school
?s
safety
plan. gwynn shamlin, east baton rouge parish i care program director says, ??e east baton rouge parish
school
system publishes an annual student handbook, as does each individual
school
. ?e handbooks make recommendations to parents regarding
safety
, including bus, internet, and
school
safety
suggestions.? take a moment to review your
school
?s procedures in the handbook or with administration, and if you find an area of
safety
that you feel might be lacking, address the issue with your
child
?s
school
. communicate with teachers and faculty. all
school
s should have a staff that has been trained on what to do in a variety of emergency situations, but keep in mind that you are still the best advocate for your
child
. ask your
child
?s teacher or administrators what plans they have in place for emergencies such as fires, hurricanes, intruders, or other
safety
threats to your
child
?s
school
. keep in mind that some
safety
drills may be intentionally unannounced. alerts, or use social media to get the word out. for east baton rouge parish
school
s, shamlin says their system-wide phone alert system, j-campus, can contact parents via home phone and cell phone to relay urgent
safety
messages in a timely manner. if you were to take only one step for
school
safety
, let it be this: take a few minutes to check with your
child
?s
school
and be sure you are set up to receive all emergency alerts by whichever method is offered at your
school
. do your part. maintain a partnership addressing and understanding
school
safety
. do your part by knowing and respecting your
school
?s
safety
procedures. for example, do you follow all
school
safety
procedures such as checking in to receive a visitor identification badge or parking in designated areas? keep in mind that sometimes doing your part may also mean letting your
school
?s administration do theirs. once you know that your
school
has emergency procedures in place, don?t waste valuable time making multiple calls or visits to the
school
during a potential crisis situation. trust the administration to implement the plans they have in place to keep your
child
ren safe at
school
. ?
school
safety
awareness 5 6 b r p a r e n t s . c o m | n o v e m b e r 2 0 1 7
page-57.html