Parents address board on school safety

Officials list current policies now in place

Last month’s school shooting in Parkland, Fla., has galvanized some parents in the North Hills School District.

Several parents asked the school board on March 15 to implement programs offered by Sandy Hook Promise to educate students about social inclusion, recognizing students at risk of violence and how to say something about what they see or hear.

Tracy Borne said her kids told her about an elementary school student two weeks ago who was talking on the bus about killing himself. He then talked about guns and shooting and asked the kids around him if they had guns in their homes.

“Does this give you pause? Because it should,” she said.

Students reported the student to the bus patrol — a sixth-grader — whose reaction was “he says that all the time,” Mrs. Borne said. She added that she reported it to the building principal.

Mrs. Borne said that in four of five school shootings, the shooter told somebody about his plan. Seven out of 10 kids contemplating suicide also have told someone about it.

“Why are these kids not reporting these things? Because we are not teaching them how to,” she said.

Jocelyn McCarty said the intruder alarm went off on Jan. 29 in the preschool where she works.

“That was the longest five minutes of my life in a preschool supply closet,” she said, adding that it turned out to be a false alarm. “It’s amazing how many thoughts can go through your head in a few

minutes.”

Lisa Weaver asked if there is standard protocol for drills and if the district is evaluating its safety procedures after Parkland.

“We continually seek to be proactive,” said Superintendent Patrick Mannarino.

Mr. Mannarino said all entrances are locked during school hours, and visitors must present a photo ID to be scanned to gain access.

Most buildings have captured entrances, and the district has a “wide network of cameras” that are monitored by Ross and West View police. The police also “interact frequently with students,” and make unannounced visits to the buildings.

The district also has interventions and support for troubled students through the counseling department.

Mr. Mannarino urged parents to talk to their children about being careful about what they post on social media and to report anything that they see or hear. The district has an anonymous tip line at 412318-1111.

In other business, the board approved the pricing for its online academy for the 2018-19 school year.

The Online Academy @ North Hills is a K-12 cyber school that was designed and staffed by North Hills teachers. There are 60 students enrolled in the online academy for the 2017-18 school year, saving the district $728,460 over paying tuition to other cyber schools, said Jeff Taylor, assistant superintendent.

The academy also draws students from other school districts that do not offer online options, Mr. Taylor said.

“They are getting a North Hills education to get a North Hills diploma. They are just doing it a different way than a brick and mortar building,” said Mr. Mannarino. “We have a far superior product.”

The board approved three pricing tiers for the online academy: $3,000 for full-time online with a North Hills teacher; $2,000 for full-time online with a teacher from the student’s home district but computer and internet provided by North Hills; and $1,000 for full-time online with both teachers and computer equipment provided by the student’s home district.

Mr. Taylor said some students blend attending North Hills schools with the online academy. All online students can participate in assemblies, field trips and extracurricular activities.