North Duplin Elementary school recognized for crisis preparation
By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on June 1, 2004 1:58 PM
CALYPSO -- The attorney general has recognized North Duplin Elementary School for taking proactive measures to address a crisis on campus.
Previously, the attorney general had recognized two schools in Wayne County -- Goldsboro Middle School and Spring Creek High School -- and seven in Duplin: B.F. Grady and Beulaville Elementary, E.E. Smith Middle, East Duplin High, Kenansville and Warsaw Elementary and Warsaw Middle School.
Early last year, the Attorney General's Office and the N.C. Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Center for the Prevention of School Violence mailed every school in the state a critical-incident response kit. Designed to help schools prepare to respond to a crisis, these kits contained a booklet and video about a school with a gunman on campus.
Since the distribution of these tools, hundreds of schools have met the recommendations found in the video and booklet. Completed kits contain things like architectural blueprints for the school; procedures to cut-off fire alarms, utilities, sprinkler systems and cable television; keys to the school in a separately locked container; information on evacuation routes and safe rally locations; and emergency contact information for students and school staff.
To recognize these schools, the Attorney General's Office and the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention established the Critical Incident Response Kit Recognition Program.
To be recognized, the schools met the following three criteria: assembly of two Critical Incident Response Kits; completion of the School Site Survey form, which provides important information to emergency responders about the school; and viewing of the video "A Critical Incident: What to Do in the First Twenty Minutes" by the school staff.
North Duplin Elementary will receive a certificate to display in the school's office and a decal signifying the school's recognition that can be placed on a door near the front entrance of the school.
Principal Wendy Royal said she received word of the recognition last week. She said her school received one of the wireless phones provided by the attorney general.
"We've got one in our black box, and we keep it plugged up in case the phone lines are cut," said Dr. Royal. The attorney general's Web site said public schools in the Alltel wireless coverage area received a free wireless telephone as part of their kits.
The phones were made available through a settlement reached last year between the Attorney General and the communications company regarding price disclosures.
For more information, see the Juvenile Justice Web site at www.cpsv.org and the Attorney General's Web site at www.jus.state.nc.us.