Dear Eatontown Public Schools Community Member:
As the Superintendent of Schools, I wanted to remind our school community that Eatontown Public Schools values student and staff safety and works throughout the year to support public safety. As an educator of 25 years as well as a parent of four, I am committed to ensuring that safety and security remain an important goal for our district with the help and support of an amazing team.
Although I cannot share specific elements of our district security plan, I can highlight a few areas of the plan that help our schools maintain security. First, our school counselors work with the students and staff in each school to promote social emotional learning and mental health. Second, our schools work closely with the Eatontown Police Department and Eatontown Office of Emergency Management to review, practice, and enhance our school safety protocols and procedures. This collaboration is enhanced by the presence of trained Class 3 Security Officers in our schools. Third, over the course of the last 12 years, the district has invested in technology to fortify areas of the schools, improve communication among team members when needed, increase visibility, and enhance communication with emergency responders to name a few. The district approaches school security as a mindset, not as a reaction to news events. Having said this, our district is always open to improving drills, protocols, and technology based upon best practices and advice from the experts in the field of school security.
Attached to this letter you will find some correspondences that have been sent to the school community on various school security topics throughout this year. If you have not reviewed them already, please take a moment to read them. Additionally, our district website contains pertinent information and resources related to school violence, which can be found on the Social Emotional Learning page.
If you have any questions regarding school security, please contact your child’s school principal. He or she can answer general questions, however, there are limits to what the principal can share due to public safety.
Thank you for your consideration and cooperation. The district does not take school security concerns lightly and like you, is saddened that education is not just about things like reading, writing, and arithmetic any longer.
Sincerely,
Scott T. McCue Superintendent of Schools