| Our hearts go out to those impacted by the recent school tragedies in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin as well as here in Colorado. This has been a tragic and shocking time for school communities around the nation. |
| Student safety and security is a top priority for Aurora Public Schools. As a result of these incidents, APS has been reassessing current security practices to ensure that we are doing everything we can to provide our staff and students a safe environment in which to work and learn. |
| To help with this ongoing assessment, Superintendent John L. Barry has added Christine Hoppe, Director of Risk Management and Security, to the Superintendent’s Cabinet. She will also serve as Incident Response Team Commander during a crisis. |
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| In addition, Superintendent Barry is meeting with Monte Moses, Superintendent of Cherry Creek Schools, and Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates on Oct. 6. They will discuss ways of working together to increase safety in our schools. |
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APS also has many proactive policies and procedures in place to ensure safety for all of our schools, including:
- Regular unannounced school visits by Risk Management personnel to ensure that sites are following strict visitor check-in procedures
- All staff members required to wear name tags and ID Badges
- Lockdown plans and regular safety drills at all APS sites
- Annual site safety reviews
- Safe2Tell Hotline (http://www.safe2tell.org/), which provides students a secure place to call and discuss concerns about safety issues
- Close relationships with the Aurora Police Department School Resource Officers at each middle and high school
- Screening of all school volunteers
- Fully monitored alarm systems at all schools and sites
- Emergency Guidebooks for all staff members
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Community
Picking up the PACE!
