JACKSON – Stephen Genco, the superintendent of schools in the Jackson School District, has addressed the issue of school safety in a letter to Jackson families and staff members.
Genco’s Feb. 20 letter was issued six days after a gunman shot and killed 17 people and injured 14 others at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.
“Our community became understandably emotional and afraid when unsubstantiated rumors circulated on social media about a Jackson student who was thought to be threatening to harm students and staff at Jackson Memorial High School,” Genco said. “As stated in our district communication and in police department communications, there was never a credible threat to our students and staff.”
Genco said independent social media posts often provide inaccurate and misleading information.
“We are asking our community to keep this in mind and to rely on official school district and police information. While we must often limit details due to student confidentiality, we make every effort to be transparent in disseminating as much information as we can,” the superintendent said.
He said officials will not hesitate to take any action that will keep students and staff members safe.
“A safe school community is a collective effort of parents, staff, students and the community. Every incident reported to the school or police is fully investigated. The police, school resource officers and school staff worked collaboratively to investigate all reports.
“I want to thank the Jackson police for their thorough investigation of these reports and for the additional officers they provided to our schools. We continue to encourage anyone who learns of a potential safety threat to immediately notify the school district and the police,” Genco said.
According to Genco, in the school district:
- All doors are locked and visitors must be cleared to be buzzed into a building;
- Security vestibules are installed or are being installed in all schools over the next year;
- School officials do not allow visitors to enter a building during student arrival and dismissal;
- Both high schools have student resource officers who are uniformed police officers who walk the other schools on a routine basis;
- Multiple trained security personnel work daily in the schools;
- Practice drills are held monthly;
- Training provides staff members, administrators and students with alternative methods to respond and evacuate during a crisis;
- Administrators have ongoing communication with the Jackson Police Department;
- Security cameras are placed inside and outside the buildings and police have access to the cameras.
“We also have an agreement with police that they patrol our school parking lots on a frequent basis. Although there are many protocols and measures in place, we recognize that continued focus on safety and security is crucial.
“We will work with law enforcement to continue to identify other options that will strengthen our school security and provide a physically and emotionally safe environment for all children to learn,” Genco said.
