NEWS RELEASE: Statement of San Diego Unified Superintendent Bill Kowba to Parents on Connecticut School Tragedy

NEWS RELEASE from the San Diego Unified School District, December 14, 2012

STATEMENT OF SAN DIEGO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT BILL KOWBA
TO PARENTS ON CONNECTICUT SCHOOL TRAGEDY

The following was email to parents/guardians in the San Diego Unified
School District.

The tragic and senseless shooting today at Sandy Hook Elementary School in
Newtown, Connecticut has shocked and saddened all of us. We join in the
national outpouring of grief and offer our deepest condolences to the
families of the victims. No words can express our feelings about this
horrific tragedy.

The safety of the children who attend schools is always the highest
priority of every employee at every school in our country. But sadly, we
live in a world where senseless acts of violence occur all too frequently.
Today¹s shooting transcends our ability to understand how anyone could
commit such an act on innocent children, teachers and caretakers.

All San Diego Unified schools have safety plans that cover all
contingencies. We are continually reviewing those plans and training our
staff to ensure the safety of our students. We also have the expertise of
our own school police department who monitor the safety of our school
campuses. Our school police and our school staff will have a heightened
awareness of security issues during this time.

Our school counselors and crisis response teams will be available to our
Principals to provide guidance during the coming days to support the
emotional needs of our students. Counseling professionals recommend that
parents encourage their children to talk about their thoughts and feelings
related to this incident and to reassure children of their own health and
safety. It is also recommended that parents limit children¹s television
viewing, since this tragedy will receive extensive media coverage.

Unfortunately in our society, there are no absolute safe havens from
senseless acts of violence. But our schools are safe environments where
our students grow and learn each school day under the care and guidance of
dedicated and caring teachers and school staff. I want to assure our
parents and the community that we will continue to protect our students
and give them a sense of safety and well-being at our schools as we all
cope to understand the tragedy in Connecticut.

BILL KOWBA



_ _ _ _

CONTACT: Jack Brandais | Communications Department | San Diego Unified
School District | (619) 725-5570 (Desk) | (619) 607-0477 (Cell)

You are a subscriber to the news release mailing list for the San Diego Unified School District. To unsubscribe, send a message to "media@lists-sandi-net" with the word "unsubscribe" in the body of the message. For an archive of these releases, go to http://sdusd-news.blogspot.com/