Safety & Security

The safety and security of our students, staff, and visitors are top priorities. District leaders work closely with local first responders and emergency management personnel to ensure our emergency/crisis response plans reflect appropriate practices. Staff and students are trained in an All-Hazards approach to emergency response. 

The Monona Grove School District incorporates PREPaRE (developed by the National Association of School Psychologists) and Standard Crisis Response Protocol (developed by the i love u guys Foundation).

Building Safety

Our buildings are equipped with modern physical safety features that provide a safe and secure learning environment. 

Some of the key features include: 

• Secure entrances
• Digital door lock system
• Video surveillance systems
• Shatter resistant windows
• Classroom emergency buttons
• Instant emergency notification clock system
• Security barriers that close/lock automatically in an emergency

Prevention

Safe schools begin with proactively eliminating or reducing the likelihood of unsafe behaviors or events from taking place. Our staff are trained in the evidenced-based PREPaRE curriculum developed by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). PREPaRE training improves and strengthens school safety, crisis management plans and emergency response.

Speak Up Speak Out

SUSO is a reporting “tip-line” program run by the Wisconsin Office of School Safety (OSS) Resource Center. SUSO provides an easy way for students, parents, school staff and community members to submit a school safety concern by downloading the SUSO app (Android and iOS), visiting speakup.widoj.gov or by calling 1-800-MY-SUSO-1. 

SUSO Resource Center staff work around-the-clock to respond to reports and to deploy a response locally by communicating directly with school administrators, law enforcement and counselors. All reports are addressed by a live person (not AI) who is trained in the appropriate actions to take immediately upon a report. 

Submit a SUSO report here. 

Response 

The Monona Grove School District utilizes the Standard Crisis Response Protocol (developed by the i love u guys Foundation) which is an all-hazards approach to school safety. The adoption of these protocols and systems aligns the Monona Grove School District with national, state, and local agencies as well as other local school districts. These protocols provide a foundation for sustainable practices moving forward.  

Training

District staff are trained annually on emergency response procedures. This training is reinforced throughout the school year during monthly drills. Each school has a designated Situation Response Team (SRT) that receives additional training to address emergencies in their building.

Drills

School safety drills are designed to be effective and age-appropriate. Drills are never meant to be scary. Teachers and students will often have “talking drills” (reading or age-appropriate activities), “thinking drills” (planning and idea-generating) before holding active drills (calmly practicing). The State of Wisconsin requires all schools to complete at least one safety drill per month during the school year, and at least one Lockdown drill prior to December 31st. The drills that may be completed are: Fire, Hold, Secure, Shelter (weather), Evacuation, Lockdown.

Communication during emergencies

Families receive notification when Shelter, Evacuation and Lockdown protocol are implemented. Administrators work to determine if a message to families should be sent after a classroom hold or building secure protocol. Factors for establishing impact include the age of the students, the nature of the hold/secure, the scale of the student impact, and more. 

Resources for Families 

We encourage families to talk regularly about safety. This resource (PDF) (en español) from the National Association of School Psychologists is a great starting point and is helpful in providing developmentally appropriate information. Start your conversations now; you can help prepare your child by reinforcing the following concepts at home:

• Self-confidence comes from trying things that are difficult and get easier as we practice them. Our children are smart and capable, especially when they have the knowledge about how to prepare and respond. 
• There are many solutions and options when faced with a problem.
• When we are prepared for difficult situations, we make informed decisions and have more control.
• Have your child explain the different safety drills they practice at school and when they use them.
• Discuss the importance of following the teacher’s directions at all times.