Dear Rossford Schools Community:
Ensuring student safety is a top priority for the district
and is a priority that is continually under review for improvement. A major
part of the improvement process is the review of our safety plans with area
emergency responders to make sure we have the best practices included in our
plans and communication with emergency personnel remains open and consistent.
In keeping with these goals Rossford Schools recently hosted
representatives from several area emergency agencies for what is called a
safety table-top exercise. The table-top exercise presents to the school
personnel and emergency responders different emergency scenarios using various
circumstances in each scenario such as time of day for the occurrence and
student age groups involved.
These scenarios create a dialogue between school officials,
law enforcement, and our fire/EMS. School officials apply their developed plans
to each scenario and the group discusses strengths of the plans as well as
areas for improvement. Emergency personnel apply the most recent safety
practices and protocols to the situations. When we couple the emergency
protocols with our plans it this gives school staff and responding agencies a
stronger sense of what to expect should a situation occur in the district.
Discussions about preventative measures were included as
well. These exercises provided an opportunity for our administrators to share
the capabilities of our safety equipment and software for emergency personnel
to use to their benefit.
Finally, the student-family reunification process was
reviewed. We discussed our ability to use smartphone technology for faster
student accountability measures as well as the process used to release students
to their parents and guardians. The communication practices used to notify
families were also a part of the morning’s discussions.
All of this information is scrutinized for best practices by
the group and district plans are adjusted where needed to reflect and provide
the safest measures possible for our students and staff.
In short, the table-top exercises were mutually beneficial
and provided a great opportunity to discuss student safety and work with our
area emergency experts, all in the name of providing a safe and secure
environment for our students while in our care. We want to express our sincere
thanks to all of our emergency responders for sharing their time and expertise,
especially Brad Gilbert, Director of the Wood County Emergency Management
Agency for conducting the event and serving as its facilitator. Others to thank:
Rossford Police and Fire, Wood County Sheriff Office, Perrysburg Township Fire,
Wood County Emergency Management Agency, and school staff for taking the time
to participate and help us plan and prepare for an emergency situation.