HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-03-02-BRIDGE-min BRIDGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SCHOOL-BASED SITE COUNCIL
55 Middleby Road, Lexington, MA 02421
781-861-2510
MARCH 2, 2018 MEETING MINUTES
APPROVED JUNE 1, 2018
PRESENT: Lynnette Allen, Megan Brown,Amelia Brower, Lucia Brower, Erin Cerat, Meg
Colella,Jon Cunha,Allison Gullingsrud, Kimberly Hensle Lowrance,Amy Kvaal, Ruth
Litchfield, Zeba McGibbon, Deirdre Schadler, and Shawn Wood.
ABSENT: Kristen Gray, Huan Liu, Beth Murnaghan, Debbie Side, and Melanie Tanionos.
MEETING SUMMARY:
Meg Colella, Bridge Elementary School-Based Site Council Chair (SBC), led the meeting,
which began at 8 AM in the Bridge Elementary School Library.
The meeting began with the approval of the December and January meeting minutes.
Next, Ms. Colella began a presentation on the physical safety of students and staff at Bridge,
a topic that had been requested from discussion by SBC members a few months ago and
which is now even more critical after the rise in school shootings in our country. She
referred the SBC to her recent newsletter (see https:://www.smore.com/yx8mt) in which
she updated the community about safety at Bridge.
For a while now, Ms. Colella has been leading the Bridge staff in a series of trainings and
simulations designed to prepare them for an emergency, such as an active shooter in the
building. These trainings have been held with the cooperation of the Lexington Police
Department, and are part of the district's efforts to get the staff familiar with ALICE
protocols.ALICE—which stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate—is a
strategy designed to help staff respond quickly and appropriately in an emergency. Its goal
is to minimize fatalities.
Ms. Colella, as a certified ALICE trainer, explained that people used to believe that
sheltering in place was the best strategy in an active shooter situation,but research -
especially after the Virginia Tech shooting—has shown that it is, in fact,the worst decision.
People should be empowered to make the decision that is best for them, depending upon
where they are located. Therefore,ALICE gives staff the tools to make a decision,without
waiting on guidance from the principal or another school leader.
The A in ALICE stands for alert. The goal here is to let as many people as possible know
what is going on during an emergency. To that end, Bridge staff can send an alert from
anywhere in the building to the rest of the building, and they have been directed to be as
detailed and explicit as possible. For example, staff wouldn't say"code red," instead they
would say"there's a shooter in the cafeteria." This gives the rest of the people in the
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building critical details they need to determine a course of action—from evacuating to
barricading themselves in a room.
Ms. Colella says she is confident in her staff to make the right decisions in an emergency,
and added the simulation exercises have been very helpful. Bridge staff have prepared for a
number of scenarios, and it is important, Ms. Colella said,to know that there is no one right
choice in an emergency. Staff will use their best judgment to keep themselves and our
students safe.
Parents raised concerns about the perimeter of school. How easy it is to get into Bridge—
through the windows or glass doors? Ms. Colella agreed that the building's infrastructure is
something to consider,but it is out of her hands. Reinforcing the building is a district or
state question.
Ms. Colella explained that a meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 5 to discuss the March
14 walkout, a protest against gun violence. District staff,the police,town leadership, and
union representatives will consider the implications for the walkout for staff and students,
safety during the walkout, etc. The expectation is the Lexington High School will see the
biggest impact of the walkout,with less activity and the elementary and middle schools,
though parents are welcome to sign out their children for the walkout should they wish to
participate.
ALICE has not yet been rolled out to students,though earlier this year, Kristen Gray
attended an ALICE drill in Wilmington at a K-2 elementary school to understand how it
works with the youngest of students. Lexington Public Schools (LPS) is still deciding about
rolling it out here. Ms. Colella noted a rollout of ALICE at LPS would include parent
meetings and would likely start at Lexington High School (LHS) first.
Currently, fire drills are the only emergency situation training held for students at Bridge.
These drills have been used to familiarize students with what to do and where to go if they
are in their classroom, at lunch, at a special, in morning meeting, in the bathroom, etc.
Students are reminded to be quiet and listen during a drill.
Ms. Colella explained that if Bridge needed to be evacuated, students would be sent to
Lincoln Field or LHS (as was the case a few years ago when we had to leave the building
because a gas smell was detected). Staff developed a video of the walk from Bridge to LHS
for the students, and Ms. Colella said they would show it again to students at an upcoming
school-wide meeting.
Parents asked Ms. Colella what their messages to their children should be about a potential
emergency at the school. She recommended that parents emphasize listening to
staff/teachers.Additionally, if the child is old enough,they should be told, if no adult is
around (for example,they are in the bathroom when an emergency arises),they should
make a decision for themselves (i.e., run, shelter in place, etc.).
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At our next meeting,we will follow up on today's conversation about safety, including
brainstorm ways the community can assist the Bridge staff in keeping our school safe, and
will be follow up the discussion during our December meeting about parking lot/drop-off
process and procedures.
Our next meetings will be held April 27 and June 8.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
• Contact Meg Colella, Principal and Co-Chair, mcolella(@lexingtonma.org, or Kimberly
Hensle Lowrance, Parent Representative and Co-Chair, khensle(@gmail.com
• Visit https://Ips.lexingtonma.org/domain/481
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