Belmond-Klemme

January 15, 2024

 Dear Belmond-Klemme Community School District Stakeholders,

 Due to the heightened emotion and care during this time, below, you will find a rather lengthy, yet important, communication. For a district safety and security update, please read the following:

 Earlier, in a community newsletter, resources focused on school-related safety and security issues and responses were sent. At the time, the information was to meet any immediate needs in light of the tragedy in the Perry Community School District.

 Shortly after, our teachers and board members received the following excerpt from a weekly message:

 On Thursday, January 11th, our Leadership Team will meet to focus on continuous improvement of safety and security for students, staff, families, and community members engaged on our school campuses.

 A leading tool that will be used to guide the conversations included and was not limited to the Belmond-Klemme Iowa School Assessment Report which was created pursuant to the Governor’s initiative to support safety and security.

 The Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEMD), in partnership with local school districts, law enforcement personnel, private sector parties, and other stakeholders, developed and issued school district safety and security vulnerability assessment reports that focus on policies, plans, and procedures for active threat incidents and other safety matters. The assessment was designed to align with SISA (K-12 Security Guide, 3rd Edition), PASS (Safety and Security Guidelines for K-12, 5th Edition), DHS (K-12 School Security Guide for Preventing and Protecting Against Gun Violence, 2nd Edition, and FEMA (IS-362.A: Multi-Hazard Emergency Planning for Schools).

 For security, such assessments are kept confidential and within need-to-know parties of an organization’s leadership team. Please, know that our team takes the safety of our students and all who visit our campuses very seriously. We will continue to seek improved processes and communication, ask reflective questions, and listen to concerns as we respond. We will collaborate with you as well.

 In light of the recent tragedy within the Perry Community School District, safety and security is heightened and at the forefront of our hearts and thoughts. It is important to note that when incidents occur at school, district leaders are often unable to share information that some might find necessary. When investigating and seeking solutions, we are bound to policy, law, and following procedures.

 Yet, when you have concerns, please reach out to your building principal as the first point of contact. Also, encourage parents, community members, and colleagues to do the same. Our goal is to communicate as best as possible, be transparent with all that is not confidential, and provide assurance that we care deeply about each child and situation.

 After this message was shared, building principals led staff meetings which included this as a topic for conversation and an opportunity for questions.

 Then, our leadership team, consisting of district leaders in the areas of school business, transportation,building and grounds, nutrition, technology, activities and at-risk services, met to create safety and security lists related to measures already in place, in-progress and upcoming, and questions to consider.

 Following this, the principals and superintendent met to create a list that can be shared publicly. Below, you will find current measures in place to keep our students, staff, families, board, community, and other stakeholders safe:

1. Police Chief Gamino, as well as local and county officers are scheduled for Active Shooter Training for ALL Staff on January 31st, 2024.
2. Safety teams from each building will attend the NASP PREPARE Training
   1. School Safety and Crisis Preparedness Curriculum to Drive the Creation of a Crisis Plan
   2. 2 Virtual Dates - Spring 2024 and In-Person Spring 2024 (Counselors)
3. Trainings that have, in the recent past, been offered and Facilitated for BKCSD staff:
   1. PK-12 Teachers trained in Mental Health First Aid
   2. Stop the Bleed
   3. CPR
   4. EMA training related to Active Shooter 
   5. Wright County Emergency Management (open-channel communication)
4. Scheduled drills will occur with local police and fire department presence.
   1. Fire
   2. Tornado
   3. Lockdown
5. Wright County Emergency Management (open-channel communication device at each building)
6. Local police presence is enhanced, and administrators have direct phone access to officers. Visits to the buildings are as needed and as often as daily. In the event of an immediate need, two to three officers often respond. In the event of an emergency, officers throughout the state of Iowa will respond.
7. Safety officials have been provided schedules of the day, including lunch and the bell-to-bell for each building.
8. Safety officials will soon receive fobs for quick access and entry to the buildings and have open access to school radio communication tools.
9. Officers are visiting buildings, eating in lunchrooms, and patrolling each campus.
10. The county sheriff and officers have hosted three safety protocol meetings with administrators from across Wright County. Training to use the State of Iowa Network’s communication devices occurred after installation in each building site.
11. Times for police canines to canvas the school campuses are set and will be kept confidential for security reasons.
12. Metal  detectors are available on site and can be utilized, as needed, for identification of vapes, pens, weapons, etc.
13. Vape detectors are installed in areas throughout the building.
14. Classroom doors are closed while classes are in session.
15. Students must sign out when leaving the classroom for reasons such as a restroom break, call to the office, etc.
16. Administrators keep a radio on their person at all times.
17. Elementary students are escorted to specials, lunch, recess, etc. throughout the day.
18. A police officer is present at School Board meetings, and all attendees must enter through the front door of the Jr.-Sr. High School. All other doors are locked.
19. The main campus buildings have operational electronic entry systems and a programmed fob system for specific doors.
20. All buildings have a camera system with in-house and remote access available.
21. The district is in the midst of identifying an upgraded system using the Governor’s Safety Grant (maximum of $50,000 per building).
22. Electronic communications require two-factor authentication.
23. Teachers, staff, substitute teachers, and coaches (all paid staff) wear ID Badges for easy identification.
24. Visitors to the building are required to sign in and wear identification badges with name, date, and reason for visit. No visitor(s), vendor(s), or outside service provider(s) (if we know them or not) are allowed in the hall or building without a pass or identification badge.
25. At the Jr.-Sr. High, all doors are locked during the school day.
26. At Jacobson Elementary, all four of our alternative entrances are locked and are only accessible with a fob throughout the day. The main entrance requires either a fob or a release by the secretaries to gain entry to the main building.
27. Administrators have regular conversations about propping doors open and rolling doors back (unlocking). Administrators gather informal data for accountability purposes.
28. District administrators supervise any doors unlocked for deliveries and provide a strong visual presence when deliveries are being made to the building.
29. Superintendent and principals attend School Administrators of Iowa School Law Conferences to keep apprised of appropriate response to illegal substances, weapons, threats of violence, etc. and engage in policy review.
30. The School Board Policy Committee meets to update policies related to school safety and security in various aspects such as social media, physical threats, possession of illegal substances, etc.
31. Student Conversations and Learning:

1. See Something Say Something
2. 988
3. Wright County Presentation- Dangers of Social Media- Grades 5-12
4. Bronco Academy- 2 times a year- Elementary

During Bronco Academy, students receive regular reminders about letting strangers into the building. The strict rule is that only adults can let people into the building and our students have been observed doing this (or more appropriately, not doing this) on more than one occasion (including USPS).

1. High School Announcements
   1. Revisit Policies and procedures
2. Bronco Pride lessons related to Mental Health have occurred.

32.  Be Safe + Sound Initiative was shared with Counselors who shared it with students.       

1.  Safe and Sound Iowa
2. Phone: 800-224-6018
3. Corresponding App               

33.  This year, each building committed to a renewed supervision presence in the hallways and  

       throughout the buildings. 

34.  Building security assessment of camera coverage and vulnerabilities have occurred through

       the State of Iowa Critical Incident Mapping,

35.  Each building site dedicated time to analyzing their site's State of Iowa Vulnerability

       Assessments.

36.  TVs have arrived for each office to hook up directly to the camera system and will have a specific focus on the entryways, hallways, and other high traffic areas.

37.  TVs for principals’ offices are ordered and will be installed upon arrival. They will focus on unlocked doors before and after school as well as hallways during the school day.

38.  Communication to office staff from principals was sent regarding expectations for access in and out of the office area.

39.  A District Safety Team composed of district and building administrators, Central Rivers Area Education Agency staff, school district counselors, instructional coaches, the superintendent, an outside-agency counselor, and the school nurse is identified.

On one last note, if you plan to attend a school board or other school-related meeting in the future, please plan to enter through the Jr.-Sr. High front office doors. (This is a change from the location most have entered the building in the past.) 

This list includes and is not limited to the safety measures in place and practiced within the BKCSD. As a team, we pledge to continue to enhance our safety measures through attending training, asking questions, considering scenarios, putting processes in place, fulfilling available safety grants and other means. Your children are at the forefront of all we do, and we will care for one another just the same.

Respectfully,

Brandon Allen, Director of Transportation

Kim Belstene, Director of Nutrition Services

Chris Bergman, Interim Superintendent

Theresa Greenfield, School Business Official

Cory Heifner, Director of Building and Grounds

Ckay Jensen, Jr.-Sr. High School Principal

Thelma Martinez, Assistant School Business Official

Trish Morris, Director Technology

McKenna Pentico, School Board Secretary

James Severson, Activities Director

Callie Stein, Dean of Students

Mark Young, Jacobson Elementary Principal

 

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