2-29 Rumors

Clearly the rumors circulating at least Valley wide must be responded to and Nazareth has essentially utilized its preparation enacted on the anniversary of Columbine according to an article in the Express-Times (read it here).

Given the recent spate of bomb threats in Nazareth with the latest on Wednesday (read the article from the Express-Times here), I could see people being worried and concerned, but I'd imagine many more are getting frustrated with the constant disruptions and re-allocations of staff time and resources all of which take away from educating students.

Articles regarding 2-29 appeared in the Morning Call:

• How area schools are responding - read it here.
• Potential origins of the rumors - read it here.

Nazareth officials have sent letters home with parents and posted them on the school web site (one from each building is available here).

The bottom line is that no specific threats have been made as best I could follow at any area school. The exercise of planning and preparing for a threat, however, is not wasted time. I've heard some concerns that while full-time professional staff have been well versed in the planning that certain part-time and volunteer staff have in certain buildings not had any. This may have been an instance of time-constraints, but hopefully it will be remedied in the future.

Another concern brought to my attention by several people is the design of the current MS building with the cafeteria having one full side of glass facing the parking lot. From an aesthetic standpoint this may look very nice and provide a bright environment for students during lunch, it is also not the best from a safety/security standpoint.

This got me thinking to our new MS building. While we've given considerable thought to its green rating, I wonder to what extent security was considered.