Following the recent mass shootings in Buffalo and Texas, Jamestown Public Schools is stepping up its focus on security.

In general, the schools have safety and emergency plans for any potential threat. Some are currently in place right now.

“Our safety and security supervisor, Brad Meyers, leads a post-incident review if something happens here or nationally,” Superintendent Kevin Whitaker said. “He goes through what happened and what might’ve happened, or what could’ve been done differently. We also have what is known as a table-top exercise, which is a make-believe scenario as if something had happened, and we go through what we would do and then review that.”

Other current security measures include keeping doors locked, having staff use security cards with the ability to be disabled if lost, and cameras.

“We have our (school resource officers) and red shirts too,” Whitaker said. “We are hoping to expand the SRO program to the elementary school next year as well. Right now we have one at the high school and one that goes between the elementary and middle schools. And then we have our radio system and lockdown drills.”

One of the most important safety assets the schools have, Whitaker said, is the large amount of staff and students.

“We have the ‘see something, say something’ policy,” Whitaker said. “If kids and staff see something potentially going on they can report it. Probably the most important thing we can do is to pay attention to the preventative measures we can take, focusing on mental health and counselors and people with special training. We can be proactive to help kids through their struggles and help them to be well-adjusted for later in life.”

Within the last two weeks, a person deemed suspicious prompted brief lockouts at two city schools May 25. No threat was found and the lockouts were quickly lifted.

Following the tragedy in Texas, Whitaker said his reaction was not much different than anyone else’s, but he also had to think about what was able to be done in Jamestown as well.

“Being a school superintendent is not much different than someone who is not,” Whitaker said. “I was shocked, in disbelief, looking at this event that had no rational explanation. While we search for a meaning to this senseless act, my thoughts turned to the kids, staff, families and community and the impact it had on the area and beyond. We have protocols in place that we can practice and involve the police, but as much as I think about the families there’s no way I can understand their grief. I just want to be able to protect our kids so it doesn’t happen here.”

To the staff and concerned families, Whitaker told them to take care of themselves.

“I sent a message saying it’s OK not to be OK following something like this,” Whitaker said. “I included links to mental health resources, and for the staff I supported the idea of engaging students in conversation, either started by the teacher or the student themselves. We’ve had the challenges over the last two years following the pandemic and everything that has built up from that, and that has been redoubled now by these tragedies. In a normal time, May and June are already the most stressful times of the year for students, and this just increases it.”

As far as change in the future goes, Whitaker said that whatever is put in place to fix events such as this needs to involve every aspect.

“It’s not an easy solution,” Whitaker said. “We can’t just pass a law and expect everything to be fine. If that would work, we would’ve done it already. We have what is called wrap-around services, looking at food and housing problems or illnesses, any sort of problem that might show itself in a student in the form of homework or grade problems. This allows us to provide support in those areas. The solution has to involve all aspects; threat assessment, mental health resources, which includes more funding from the government and counseling, so we can avoid further build up of stress or problems that are already present.”

Student safety remains the No. 1 priority.

“The most important thing is the safety and security of our kids,” Whitaker said. “They’re one of our greatest assets and we have to be able to safeguard them. Teachers do help with that too. I don’t think a lot of people understand the stress that teachers go through on a daily basis. It’s important for them to know that teachers will stand in front of their kids in situations like this. I hope it never happens again. But, our teachers remain dedicated to making sure our kids are safe and taken care of.”