Editor's Note: The following in its entirety was written by Redwood City School District Superintendent Jan Christensen.
December 14, 2012
Dear Parents and Community Members,
I am very sad today, as we hear the distressing news about a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. At this time, police are reporting 27 deaths, including 20 children and the gunman.
Like you, I immediately thought of my own children and grandchildren, and I am struggling to make sense of something so unimaginable. My heart goes out to the parents of the students, the staff and the entire Newtown community. The entire nation will be grieving this weekend as we all begin to process this horrible tragedy.
While this appears to be an isolated incident far from our schools, I know this news raises many concerns for every parent. I do want to assure you that safety is our top priority at all times. We have a safety plan in place at every school, and we regularly practice lockdown procedures. Whenever an event such as this occurs, we re-assess our safety plans to be sure that we have a proper system in place to keep students safe. We will do so again, as details emerge about what happened in Newton. We were in contact with local law enforcement officials today, and they are providing extra support to schools at this time.
As the news of this senseless tragedy unfolds, we know it will cause distress for parents and students. We will offer extra resources to staff and any support possible to schools next week for students who experience trauma.
In the meantime, if you are looking for support in how to talk to your children about this tragedy, here are some resources that may be helpful:
American Psychological Association:
http://www.apa.org/topics/violence/school-shooting.aspx
American School Counselor Association:
http://www.schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?contentid=672
Please know how much we care about your students and how committed we are to keeping them safe at all times.
Sincerely,
Jan Christensen
Superintendent, Redwood City School District
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