Safe Learning Environments:

Safety first.  This must be our priority.  In my profession of medicine, we are unable to provide high quality care and outcomes without first providing safe care to our patients.  Similarly, students can't effectively learn and teachers can't effectively teach without first feeling safe.  This not only includes physical safety, which is of utmost importance, but also includes concepts such as psychological and social-emotional safety as well.  To fully engage our students, we must build a sense of belonging, safety, and security so that they can achieve their full potential as learners.  As a parent of two students in the district, I understand these concepts to be fundamental for my children's growth and development. 

I have been thoroughly impressed with our district's commitment to safety since joining the board of education over 8 months ago.  In touring all our district schools, I was reassured when learning about the various modifications and additions that have been incorporated into each of our district school's physical layout to enhance security.  Similarly, best practice processes are clearly in place to respond to potential safety concerns and as a school board member, I am dedicated to ensuring that these processes are followed, kept up-to-date, and refined as necessary.  In addition, I have been pleased to see the strong community partnership we have with our School Resource Officer (SRO) program.  And last but not least, it is clear that our district's leadership takes any and all complaints about harassment and/or bullying very seriously and the school board help drives policy that supports these important and necessary interventions.