In an emergency, we understand that parents and guardians' first inclination is to come to school to pick up their child(ren). As difficult as it may be for you to do this, we ask that you please stay calm and refrain from coming to school until you are given instructions to do so. This is for several reasons:
- Emergency responders (police, fire trucks, ambulances, etc.) need access to the school to do their work. Non-emergency cars and traffic will slow down their response.
- Depending on the incident, police may secure a perimeter and block access to the school. Access to the campus may be denied by police to parents/guardians seeking to pick up their child(ren).
- Depending on the incident, reunification between parents/guardians and their child(ren) may take place at an alternate location.
- Because our parking lots are full on a normal day, we simply cannot accommodate nor have the staffing to handle additional traffic. Please give us time to provide pick-up instructions to you to ensure a smooth reunification with your child(ren).
Additionally, we ask that you refrain from calling the school should there be an emergency. Information will be provided to you quickly through ParentSquare, where we will work quickly to respond to follow-up questions/concerns to keep parents informed about the situation. In emergencies, our phone lines and staff's attention need to be focused on handling the situation and attending to your children to provide a calm and comforting environment during an incident.
Similarly, if you are able to text or call your child, we ask that you keep calm and be reassuring when talking to your child. We can assure you that our staff's primary concern during any emergency will be to care for and provide comfort for your child; please encourage your child to stay calm and to follow the directions of their teachers and other school personnel who are there to protect them until we are able to safely and securely release your child to you.