Dear Marysville Families and Community Members:
The safety of our students, staff and the entire Marysville School District family is our highest priority and duty.
We join District families and our community in expressing sadness around the events that occurred in Florida. As a result of these events, and because our students, families and community members are unfortunately familiar with this experience, we want to share what we do as a District to keep our students safe, as well as remind everyone about our safety and security procedures and practices.
In Marysville, we have and continue to refine several programs and proactive measures to help support the safety and security of all students and staff.
- First, we ask that everyone brush up on our Safety and Security FAQ, which details what we can do to prepare for an emergency, and what to do if an emergency situation occurs at your child’s school.
- All of our school staff receives Active Shooter Training and the Marysville Police Department puts together regular Active Shooter Training Drills at our schools (Not during school hours) to ensure our first responders are prepared for any scenario.
- Emergency drills are conducted monthly at each of our schools to help staff and students understand how to respond in the event of an emergency. In addition, the Marysville School District uses the Rave Application. The Rave Mobile Safety App allows all Marysville School District employees to activate the Rave Panic Button, which instantly dials 9-1-1 and sends a text message to on-site personnel. The application also provides five buttons labeled active shooter, police, fire, medical and other. These tools have helped locate missing children, identify suspicious people at schools, and increase response times to threats and medical emergencies. Learn about how this has been used successfully in our schools at https://goo.gl/p4RNZm.
- GoGuardian is program used by school staff and administrators to filter student Chromebooks on and off the MSD25 network and allows for different filtering policies at high, middle and elementary school levels. The system sends Smart Alerts to necessary staff if students are searching explicit or self- harm content. It also includes some theft recovery options, and allows teachers to orchestrate and control student devices in the classroom.
- The District uses the Safe Schools Alert, which allows anyone to report harassment, intimidation, bullying and other concerns anonymously via email, phone or text message. This system assigns a ticket to the report and schools and administrators are required to follow up on all reports. A link to Safe Schools is available on several areas of our website. You can learn more and make a report here: https://msvl-wa.safeschoolsalert.com/
- Our district continues efforts to install more security cameras at our schools. Every school has a camera at the front entrance of the school, and we are adding cameras as the funds become available. We recently installed nine cameras at Pinewood Elementary school where there has been repeat vandalism. With the passage of our Technology and Capital Facilities Levy, we will be able to direct funds to install additional cameras at priority areas.
- Our schools also ensure that all school visitors sign in and have a name badge to identify that they are approved to be on the campus. We also ask that as parents, volunteers and other visitors, you help us in this effort by always signing in and identifying yourself, regardless of how many times you may have visited the school.
- Thanks to the City of Marysville Police Department, the Marysville School District has one of the most robust securities staffing in the state, with security officers assigned to all middle and high school campuses, five School Resource Officers (Marysville Police Officers), and a facilities and security supervisor who oversees District protocols and practices.
We also believe it takes a village to keep our kids safe.
- Our Federally funded “Project Aware” Grant has provided mental health therapists, Student Assistance Professionals (SAPs), and Prevention and Intervention Specialists (PRIs) in all Marysville School District middle and high schools. These professionals provide targeted assistance with mental health issues, drug and alcohol resources and support for students. More details on Project Aware is available at http://www.msd25.org/o/District/page/project-aware--2
- Also through the “Project Aware” Grant, the Marysville School District partners with our local Education Service District to provide Free Youth Mental Health First Aide (YMHFA) training to all staff and local community members. More than two-dozen trainings have occurred over the past two years, and we continue to encourage, promote and share these training opportunities with our students, staff and community. YMHFA provides an easy to understand and interactive training that educates, informs and de-stigmatizes issues related to mental health disorders. It also provides trainees with a practical plan and strategy to support an adolescent experiencing a mental health crisis. Sign up for upcoming trainings at https://goo.gl/uceXyt
- The Marysville School District partners with Sound Mental Health (SMH) to provide support for our district’s special education population. We also use Signs of Suicide (SOS) and Social-Emotional Learning curriculum and screening in all our middle and high schools. Signs of Suicide is the only school-based suicide prevention program listed on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMSHA) National Registry of Evidence-based programs and practices that addresses suicide risk and depression, while reducing suicide attempts. You can learn more about the curriculum and access resources at www.suicideispreventable.org.
While great progress continues to be made, we have a strong sense of urgency to ensure that everything that can be done, is being done. We look forward to providing you with continued updates on the progress we are making to ensure that our students, staff and school communities are safe.
Thank you,
Jason Thompson, Acting Superintendent
Marysville School District