Hello Atkinson Families,
This past week had some emotional moments. We had a scheduled lockdown drill on Wednesday afternoon. The students and staff did a great job of maintaining calm and continuing their work silently and unseen in classrooms while they waited for office staff to unlock doors. Teachers spoke with students ahead of time to answer questions and calm their nerves.
Unfortunately, this drill was followed by a real Secure the Perimeter action on Thursday after school. Secure the Perimeter is a safety action our school takes when there is a potential threat outside of the building. When we secure the perimeter, we bring children inside from outdoor spaces and continue "business as usual" in the building until PPS Security Services tells us the threat is under control or gone. Although I do not know all of the details, there were shots fired outside of Franklin High School sometime in the afternoon. I was notified at 3:20 and we activated the Secure the Perimeter emergency action immediately. My principal substitute and several teachers went outside to clear the playground and field by bringing students and families inside or alerting families so they could make their personal response decisions. In addition, I asked Constance to send out a Remind notification of the circumstances in order to alert families to stay away from the area as we did not want our afternoon basketball players or others returning to the building with this potential threat in the vicinity. Once Security Services notified the office that the area was safe, the emergency action was ended and the community notified through a second Remind message.
Thankfully, no one was injured. However, this experience allowed us to question some of our current after school challenges, which we will be addressing in the coming weeks. The main challenge that we will address is the training and knowledge of the Champions teachers and after school contractors (such as PTA sponsored activities and classes) in our PPS emergency protocols. I will be meeting with each of them before spring break to answer questions and make sure they have the information that they need.
This event was also a reminder that Remind is PPS's primary method of communication when we have to get information out quickly to our community. If you are not currently signed up on Remind, you can call the office to get more information.
Also, I want to thank all of the families who were still on the Atkinson campus when this event occurred. These families reacted quickly and calmly. They helped to get everyone in safely and were gracious models for the students. Thank you all.
This coming week also promises to be exciting, but for different reasons! Third graders are continuing their work with their Bodyvox Artist in Residence (paid for through Run For Atkinson funds!). Maestra Vega's fifth graders are going on a field trip to OMSI. And our kindergarteners are headed to the zoo! In addition, the PTA will be hosting talent show rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday after school. I can't wait to see all of the amazing Atkinson talents!!!
Have a wonderful weekend,
Beth Essex
Interim Principal
