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RSU 18 safety committee flags open doors, railway sparks and student dysregulation as safety priorities
Summary
The safety committee reported SRO observations that non-main doors are frequently left ajar and raised alarm about a nearby railway whose diesel engines "spew sparks," requesting the railroad officer be invited; the committee recommended forming a root-cause team to address injuries linked to student dysregulation.
The RSU 18 safety committee reported multiple safety concerns and proposed follow-up steps.
Board member (Speaker 8), speaking for the committee, said school resource officers noted a pattern of non-main doors left ajar during fair weather and warned that unlocked doors are an easy way for an inappropriate person to enter a building. The committee's second safety concern was a local railway: "the local railway line diesel engines spew sparks out at the bottom," the speaker said, and noted such sparks have caused fires elsewhere. The speaker said they would write to the railroad president and invite a representative to discuss corrective actions, clarifying, "I'm not gonna represent the school, but I am gonna represent the town of Rome in my official capacity."
The committee also reviewed a summary of adverse safety events involving employees and students and proposed forming a root-cause committee to explore why the majority of injuries occur when students are "dysregulated," and what interventions the district can take. The report emphasized that administrators and support staff feel constrained by law and that the committee will examine what is feasible within existing legal limits.
The board agreed to bring the public-comment policy and cell-phone policy back for further conversation at the full board meeting; the cell-phone policy is subject to an Aug. 1 implementation requirement from recent legislation.
Next steps include inviting a railroad representative to the safety committee and creating a root-cause committee to recommend changes to reduce injuries tied to student dysregulation.
