Dear Mehlville School District families,
Safety has emerged as an issue of utmost importance during my conversations with students, parents and staff across the district. I recognize and share these sentiments.
Each of our schools has a safety and emergency plan that was created in conjunction with the St. Louis County Police and the Mehlville Fire Protection District. Each year we review, revise and practice our safety procedures to ensure our staff are prepared for events that might unexpectedly occur. Plans include, but are not limited to:
- Fire
- Accident / Medical Situations
- Tornadoes
- Intruders
- Hostage Situations
- Earthquakes
Additionally, our teachers have received 4E training. During 4E training, staff learn about the options they have to keep their students and themselves safe if there is an intruder. The 4 Es are “educate, evade, escape and engage.” Many of our staff members, beyond our school nurses, have received first aid training. In addition to our seven school resource officers, we also deploy off-duty officers throughout our schools as needed.
In Missouri, school crisis plans are considered closed records. This prevents us from sharing details of our crisis plans with parents and community members. Plans are closed records to keep people from intentionally using a crisis to hurt our students.
In case of an emergency, parents will be notified via email, text message and sometimes phone call using our student information database. If the emergency will cause school to dismiss for the day or if students and staff have been moved to a designated location off campus, we will share details on the procedures for dismissal. The St. Louis County Police, Mehlville Fire Protection District and building administrators will be responsible for managing any crisis scenes. Please follow their directions when picking up your child.
You can help us by making sure you always have accurate and working phone numbers and email addresses. Please make sure you complete your Family Information Update prior to the start of each school year. If your contact information changes during the school year, please call the school office. Additionally, if you would like to receive text alerts, please text the word “yes” to 67587.
Another way you can help is by talking with your children about personal safety. Please encourage them to follow our mantra: “If you see something, say something.” That means if your child hears that a member of the school community wants to hurt themselves or others, tell a teacher, principal or other trusted adult. Working together, we can prevent situations from escalating, and we can help students resolve conflicts in a healthy manner.
If you have any questions about your school’s safety procedures, please call your child’s principal.
Sincerely,
Chris Gaines, Ed.D.
Superintendent