Safety Team Updates

To continuously improve the knowledge, skills, and preparedness related to personal and institutional safety, especially in the schools of Williston

Here is a summary of today’s Williston safety meeting, which included our town partners—police, fire, DAML, and the town recreation department.

This month’s meeting began with a facilitated exercise about a hypothetical threat. The primary focus is always on student safety through evacuation and relocation. The discussion highlighted the importance of knowing our updated emergency plans, pre-scripted communications, and the Incident Command structure.

We are currently evaluating our participation in the VT Up for Learning student advisory board. The program may be considered for next year, contingent upon available funding and staffing capacity.

We next discussed the new morning door protocol, which involves personnel stationed at each entry point to welcome students until the school doors are locked for the day. This implementation aligns with the requirements outlined in state safety law Act 29.

We received an update from the central office about the district’s work on safety protocols through several sub-committees focused on relocation and reunification procedures, active shooter response, and Incident Command training.

The conclusion of our meeting was unexpectedly interrupted by an unplanned evacuation. All faculty, staff, and students responded effectively and efficiently, following the evacuation procedures we have regularly practiced.

The WS Safety Committee (which includes our town partners- police, fire, DAML, and town recreation) conducts monthly meetings at WCS on the second Wednesday of each month. We will be sharing updates from these discussions accordingly. Our mission is To continuously improve the knowledge, skills, and preparedness related to personal and institutional safety, especially in the schools of Williston.

This month's meeting covered upcoming school safety drills, staff training feedback, and other important safety initiatives.

We started our meeting with a virtual visit with Lindsey Hallman the executive director of Up For Learning to discuss how we can elevate student agency in school safety, possibly working with our Wild Cats Up! student advisory team.

We reviewed the exit responses from the School Safety pre-service training to make future training more effective. Greg will be responding to those who asked direct questions.

Moving forward, we'll continue to refine our drill schedule, including the possibility of three "options-based" drills we'll hold throughout the year. These drills, which focus on the options run, hide, or fight. We'll be sending out a staff guide (by the end of next week) and a letter to parents with more details. We're also looking to improve our communication and notification systems for drills.

A team of us will be attending the upcoming Governor's Safety Conference in Killington, a prominent state-sponsored event focused on safety initiatives in educational settings.

There is a team from both schools that will be attending BTAM (Behavior Threat Assessment and Management) training.

If you have any questions, please reach out to a member of the safety team.

WCS- Greg, Lisa, Jessica, Ron, Emily, Kate, Maria, Perryn, Meghan

ABS- Shani, Nicole

Williston Safety Committee:

Front Row (left to right) - Ron Larivee (WCS & ABS), Officer Currier(WPD), Meghan Putnam(WCS), Nicole Pfende(ABS), Kate Grozier(WCS), Jessica Wilson(WCS & ABS), Emily Chadwick(WCS)

Back Row (left to right) - Ashley Lizotte(WPD), Deput Chief Gerry(WFD), Deb Hinchey, Kevin Unrath (DAML), David Auriemma(WFD), Greg Marino(Williston Schools), Chris Giard (CVSD)

Not pictured: Maria Kapetanovic(WCS), Chief Foley(WPD), Lisa Barland(WCS), Shani Varricchione(ABS), Todd Goodwin (Williston Rec Dpt)