Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board hears safety briefing after nearby shooting; new SRO introduced and reunification work highlighted
Summary
At its Dec. 16 meeting the Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District introduced a new school resource officer and received a safety-and-security briefing that emphasized monthly drills, reunification planning and coordination with law enforcement after a nearby school shooting.
The Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District Board of Education on Monday, Dec. 16, introduced the district’s new school resource officer and received an updated report on safety, drills and reunification procedures as the district responded to a nearby school shooting earlier in the day.
Safety and Security Coordinator Asher Torbeck introduced Kevin Thompson of the Middleton Police Department as the new Middleton High School SRO. Thompson, who said he has seven years in law enforcement and previously worked nights, told the board he requested the SRO assignment to “have more of a positive police contact,” and that his official solo start date is Jan. 10.
Torbeck gave a district-level briefing on practices and recent exercises. He said the district runs monthly drills — classroom hold, building secure, shelter, evacuation and active-threat — and that the district is “in 100% compliance” with the requirement to complete an active-threat drill before Dec. 31. He also said the district is focusing on improving reunification: “We do a really good job of getting up to the point of...we have stopped the threat, and now what do we do next? ...we really need to build upon that, reunification, accountability of students, and getting kids, as efficiently, back to their families as we can,” Torbeck said.
Torbeck described several steps the district is taking: testing building automation, training situation response teams (SRTs), producing a substitute-staff training video and using a county-standard reunification method promoted by the I Love You Guys Foundation so neighboring districts can assist if needed. He said the district also posts safety-drill materials and recorded presentations to reach families who cannot attend meetings.
Board members asked about past uses of formal reunification procedures and the practical challenges of managing traffic and parent arrival at reunification sites. Torbeck said reunification requires law-enforcement support to control crowds and ensure children are released to the correct adults. He noted effort to make drills trauma-sensitive and to tailor procedures for nonteaching staff, transportation and food-service workers.
The board expressed appreciation for Torbeck’s work and for the district’s rapid communications earlier in the day. Torbeck said he will continue follow-up training and planning and that he welcomes parent questions.
Ending: The board did not take action on the safety briefing; the item was informational. Torbeck and Thompson said they will continue training work over the winter break and prepare follow-up materials for the board and community.
