The Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District Board of Education adopted the 2024-25 District Safety Plan during Monday night’s meeting. The plan was first presented during a public hearing on July 29. The public was able to provide feedback to Superintendent Peter Smith through Aug. 18.
The district and board of education evaluates the district safety plan each year in accordance with New York state’s Safe Schools Against Violence in Education (S.A.V.E.) Law. Having a comprehensive plan in place is a critical component of school management and student safety.
The adopted safety plan follows regulation recommendations for safety drills which aim to make the process less traumatic for students. Parents/guardians will be notified about drills.
Other updates can be found in section 2 of the safety plan, Prevention and Intervention Strategies. There is some new language regarding updated regulations and Special Patrol Officers. The district is in the process of hiring School Resource Officers or Special Patrol Officers for all five school buildings.
“I’m excited to share that we’ve hired 2 Special Patrol Officers so far. The process to fill all 5 positions is taking a little longer than anticipated. Student and staff safety is a top priority. We want to take our time to get it right and find the best candidates for these positions and our schools,” said Superintendent Peter Smith. “Until additional officers are hired, we’ll station one at the high school who will support Jamesville Elementary and another at the middle school who will support Moses DeWitt and Tecumseh.”
The district has 30 days to submit the adopted safety plan to the State Education Department.
Important security enhancement project updates
The following major projects are underway to enhance building security across the district:
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- Lockdown systems are being installed at all buildings. They have been installed and tested at all elementary buildings. Work in each building is expected to be completed in early Fall.
- New clocks/paging systems and enhanced door access controls are being installed at all buildings. The elementary buildings are completed. Work on the middle and high school buildings will be completed before school starts.
- Exterior emergency lights, including blue light strokes are being installed.
- A standardized visitor management system will be implemented.
If you have any questions about these projects, you can contact Superintendent Peter Smith at psmith@jd.cnyric.org.