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d i r e c t o r o f t h e y e a r, K - 1 2
tor of the Year judges deemed Summers more than worthy of the 2011 Campus Safety Director of the Year, K-12 nod.
improve technology at the schools. Now, all exterior doors lock after the school day begins, and at some campuses, the upgraded access control system enables Summers to track SUMMERS OBTAINS COMMUNITY SUPPORT who enters a school. Additionally, visitors are properly manWhen he first came to the district, Summers encountered aged with Ident-A-Kid software and an intercom and buzzer teachers, administrators and staff members who were com- at the main entrance that links to a video monitor on the placent about safety. To change this attitude, he knew he school secretary’s desk. had to obtain buy-in for his plans for upgrades from the To improve communications, Summers purchased 210 community and school board. Having formerly been a local Hytera 800 MHz two-way radios that are interoperable police officer and elected school board member certainly with local first responders, including fire and police. Now, came in handy. As the director, he often called on (and con- teachers in the area’s public, private, parochial and charter tinues to call on) law enforcement, the school board and the schools can communicate and receive information on the superintendent to help him solve problems in the district. same frequency during a disaster. Summers also recognized that having supporting docuDigital video surveillance cameras have also been inmentation would help him garner buy-in for his safety and stalled in the redesigned and newly constructed buildings, security efforts. He understood the importance of assess- and the video feed is now sent directly to computers in the ments from his experience principals’ offices. with the Joint Commission Not all of the upgrades were when he was a hospital setechnical, however. Summers curity director. So, in 2007 convinced campus staff to not he hired a safety and securiprop open doors and that havty consulting firm to conduct ing locked doors was customassessments of the district’s er friendly. buildings. The changes in both tech“In our 2007 report, it clearly nology and policy have been stated where the weak points widely accepted by staff, as were, what needed to be adwell as parents. dressed and recommendations “Prior to Mr. Summers takon how they should be ading over as director of safety, dressed,” he says. “I shared it Here Summers (fourth from right) is pictured with the SROs who people entered the schools with the superintendent and are assigned to the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. freely and were not required the board, and that’s how the buy-in occurred.” to sign in at the front desk,” says Jill Reifinger Marcrum, who Some of the recommendations were implemented almost is the parent of two EVSC students. “I often wondered who immediately and at little cost. (See Immediate Changes Im- some of the people were in the schools who were wanderplemented After Assessments on page 20.) Others, however, ing around. Now, when I visit my children’s schools, I am would take more time and funding. Some of the suggested required to register and have a name badge. All students, improvements included developing a visitor sign-in pro- teachers and visitors must enter through the main entrance gram; more emergency management and ICS training; more and all other doors are locked. I have comfort now that no uniformed officers in the schools; working with architects to stranger will enter the school through some back door.” include security in new building projects; providing better severe weather shelters for students; parents providing proof 883 TEACHERS, ADMINISTRATORS RECEIVE TRAINING of child custody; and dealing with the gang problems on The technology and policy upgrades were all well and good, but Summers realized that teachers and campus adcampus and in the community. That’s quite a long list of upgrades, especially during a ministrators also needed training in emergency response. deep economic recession. Despite all of this, Summers was The district, however, didn’t have any training dollars, so he applied for and received a $249,000 REMS grant in 2009. able to implement many of the recommended changes. He used the REMS funds to update procedures for drills IMPROVED ACCESS CONTROL ALLAYS PARENT FEARS and train staff. He rewrote emergency plans specifically for The district’s superintendent provided Summers with each school site, teachers, administrators and custodians. $400,000 so he could hire more officers. EVSC added part- Private, parochial and charter schools were included in the time, off-duty sworn police officers to each of the five high training, and he hosted four tabletop trainings for disaster schools and the alternative school. This gave the school re- drills that were attended by 57 district staff. source officers (SROs) time to focus on issues at the district’s “He has completely changed our view of safety,” says Eric feeder campuses. Previously, the SROs were spread too thin. Carson who is an EVSC fourth and fifth-grade math teacher, To address the access control problem, several of the safety coordinator and incident commander. “As teachers, school buildings were redesigned so the office is accessed we just assumed it was someone else’s responsibility to immediately inside the front door of the campus. This pre- keep the schools and students safe. He put the responsibilvents visitors from wandering the halls past students and ity in the hands of everybody.” classrooms to reach the school office. Summers took special note of the district’s bus drivers. Summers collaborated with the Evansville Police Depart“They are probably the most left out,” he claims. “People ment to bring in more than $84,000 to EVSC through a Com- don’t think about them, but they transport thousands of munity Oriented Policing Service (COPS) grant to further kids every day.” 18
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AUGUST 2012
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