In today’s environment, we live in an ever-changing world where wars, rumor of wars, terrorism, and the shootings of students at Kent State University rocked our world and seemed to be the norm. Not much has changed in life since I was in school through the 60’s and 70’s. We had the Cold War, the Bay of Pigs (Cuban Missile Crisis), Vietnam and assassinations. President Kennedy, his brother Attorney General Robert Kennedy along with Dr. Martin Luther King were all assassinated in the 60’s long before the prime of their life. I remember a childhood friend having an underground bomb shelter in Jacksonville due to the Cuban Missile Crisis and fear that a nuclear strike would occur in Florida. Vietnam was in full force and the threat of being drafted was real until President Nixon did away with the Selective Service Draft. I had a high Selective Service number and would have been drafted if it weren’t for President Nixon. More than likely I wouldn’t be writing this article if I had been drafted! And if you think we have controversial Presidents today, President Nixon was going to be impeached if he hadn’t voluntarily resigned due to Watergate and the discovering of his involvement and cover-up of the break-ins at the Democratic National Committee’s national office in Washington, DC. Not much has changed, has it?
In recent history, we have the Gulf War, Afghanistan, September 11, 2001 (911) and the terror the Taliban reigned with during the attacks on the World Trade Centers, the Pentagon and the subsequent attack on the Capitol or White House if it had not been for the brave heroes who took over United Flight #93 from them. Mass school shootings, starting with Columbine, brought fear and terror to our families on the safety of our children. Fast forward to today and we’re still in Iraq, Afghanistan and a new threat from ISIS and the penetration of Homeland Security with illegal immigration and terrorists who want to threaten our way of life as Americans. And we’ve witnessed unparalleled natural disasters characterized as “Acts of God” with Hurricanes, Tsunami’s, Earthquakes, Volcanic eruptions and flooding. We’re in the middle of a polarizing election of two candidates that many feel are not the most qualified to be the POTUS (President of the United States). Regardless of what side of the aisle you’re on, we need our Senators, Congressmen, and the Commander in Chief to have the highest morals & character and the internal fortitude to protect our way of life and to bring our country back into economic prosperity! In our Declaration of Independence from the British, our forefathers desired for us to have Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness and that comes with a price.
With the uncertainty of the world we live in today, there is one thing you can be confident and certain of in your child’s safety in our schools and that is the well-being of ALL our students! Their safety within our schools is our highest PRIORITY! We have protocols in place and have adopted high standards that exceed the FLDOE requirements with our Safety Policies and Procedures that address every threat and concern we could potentially face. EVERY school has the following Policies and Procedures in place:
- Monthly Fire Drills documented and routine engagement with the local Fire Department.
- Full Campus Lockdown Procedures in place and drills for incidents that may occur off campus where the Police have notified us.
- Identification process for all on-campus visitors with mandatory check-in at the front Office and Teacher/Student ID’s.
- Natural Disaster Drills, I.E. Tornado Drills and cell phones in every classroom to call parents of any impending notification of school closings.
- Monthly communiques from our Liability Insurance Carrier on Safety Issues that we update “as needed” and cover in every weekly Teacher/Staff meeting.
- Frequent monitoring of the Florida Sexual Offenders and Predators website. See: https://offender.fdle.state.fl.us/offender/homepageto keep current on who lives near our schools.
- Live Fingerprint Scan of ALL employees on state/national & FBI Criminal History prior to employment. See: http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/cms/home.
The above Safety Protocols are not all encompassing, as we continually strive to implement the latest security procedures and protocols for the safety and welfare of our students. Your child is our most precious commodity and we take their emotional well-being and safety very serious! Even though we can’t prevent every incident that occurs out of our control, we strive to provide a safe, nurturing, and loving environment so your child has the very best educational experience they can have. And to address all the threats we now have to endure, we choose to live life not in fear! The Bible says in II Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.” NKJV. God has equipped us to take control over our fears by filling our minds with His Word, giving us power over fear, and to love one another. We love our students and we want them to love school and to feel they are safe!
Larry Broach, Founder & CEO
