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While we will be enjoying 70-degree weather this weekend, wintertime is not over yet! We have posted our inclement weather procedures on our website to keep you up-to-date on school closings and delays.
As we begin 2013, there are many exciting things taking place in Davie County Schools.
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New Logo Revealed
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Davie County Schools is proud to present our new district logo. The new logo design was developed as a result of our recent strategic planning process. The strategic plan is in the final stages and will be released in the next few months. You will begin to see this new logo on all communications from Davie County Schools.
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2013-14 School Calendar Adopted
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The Board of Education adopted the 2013-14 School Calendar at their meeting this week. Students will begin the 2013-14 school year on August 26.
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Board of Education Goes Paperless
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Agendas and Materials Now Online
The Board of Education is modeling the use of technology to conduct business and become more efficient, effective, and transparent. Not only are regular Board meetings now broadcast on Yadtel and Time Warner Cable, but the meeting agendas and materials are now also available to the public on the new BoardDocs website. Visit our district website at www.davie.k12.nc.us and click on Board of Education. On this page, you will see a link to the latest agenda and meeting materials. We will also be linking the video of the meetings to the agendas in the near future.
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Facilities Update
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In November 2012, the Board of Education selected Walter, Robbs, Callahan, & Pierce Architects (WRCP) to review, revise, and update a design for a new Davie County High School. WRCP is working on a schematic design to include capacity for all students currently attending Davie County High School - a minimum of 1800 students and a minimum core capacity of 2000. The firm is also including space for all educational program areas in a 21st Century high school - including academics, arts, career and technical education, as well as athletic facilities, including a stadium. In addition, the firm is working with district staff and has solicited input from a committee of community members to develop a repurposing plan for the existing Davie County High School campus that will meet needs of both the school district and community.
There have been numerous meetings with teachers, students, and staff in December and January to gather input into the design and program needs. There have been site visits to three high school sites in Forsyth County and one new high school in Mint Hill, NC. Click here to see photos from those site visits. In December, there was a meeting with 25 community members who provided ideas of how the existing high school campus could be repurposed once a new school is constructed. Numerous ideas were generated and WRCP is developing options to consider based on the recommendations of the committee and staff. Options being considered may include the use of the current media center building for administrative purposes and the rest of the campus for designated community recreational use. Recreation use would utilize the existing gymnasiums and stadium with the addition of athletic fields and other recreation venues to boost economic development. A new school design and repurposing of the existing campus will be presented together.
In February 2013, WRCP will present a design and a cost estimate for construction, contingency, and soft costs necessary to furnish and equip the new high school. They will also present the cost estimates to repurpose the existing high school campus for administrative and recreational purposes. Stay tuned to this process; we will be sharing these design concepts and cost estimates to the Board of Education and community in February.
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High School Tours
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At the request of citizens, parents, and staff, we have arranged tours of Davie County High School. Below are dates and times of upcoming tours. To reserve your space on one of these tours, please contact Mr. Jeff Wallace, Assistant Superintendent, at wallacej@davie.k12.nc.us, or call 336-751-5921.
- Thursday, January 24 - 6:00pm - 7:00pm
- Tuesday, January 29 - 9:30am - 10:30am
- Tuesday, February 12 - 6:00pm - 7:00pm
- Wednesday, February 20 - 9:30am - 10:30am
- Wednesday, March 6 - 9:30am - 10:30am
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School Safety - New Student Hotline and Lockdowns
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The safety of our students and staff continues to be a priority across the district. We are implementing several new strategies to keep our schools safe, some you may notice, others are behind the scenes. You will continue to see more cameras installed on each campus. You will also see posters that went up in schools last week advertising a new safety hotline: 1-866-719-5890. This hotline can be used by students to report any threats of violence, harassment, theft, child abuse, drugs, alcohol, or other concerns related to school safety. We want to thank Sheriff Andy Stokes and Lead School Resource Officer Brian Jacobs from the Davie County Sheriff's Department for making this resource available to our students!
Davie County Schools uses a Crisis Management Plan that outlines procedures for many different situations. During the past few weeks, there have been many conversations around school safety and we have overheard rumors about lockdowns in schools. To clear up some misinformation out in the community, we wanted to provide an overview of a few of our procedures.
What is a Code Yellow and Code Red?
An administrator may announce a Code Yellow in a number of circumstances. Code Yellow is used to keep students out of the hallways, off playgrounds and inside classrooms. As an example, a student may be having a seizure or there may be a medical emergency. A Code Yellow would be called to allow teachers to continue instruction, but clear the hallways to allow medical personnel to quickly address the situation.
Code Red Lockdown is used for an emergency situation. For example and unfortunately, parents who are in conflict sometimes bring their disputes to school and their children are caught in the center of their dispute. When anyone begins to act in an unpredictable or threatening manner or is believed to have a weapon, the principal may call for a Code Red lockdown. The police are immediately called and rooms are locked. Teachers and students have specific procedures to follow.
There was a rumor in the community this past week that outside doors were dead bolted during a code red lockdown. This rumor is not true. We don't use dead bolt locks in schools. In a Code Red lockdown, outside doors are locked from the outside, but can always be opened from the inside. Exterior doors in a public building must always be able to be opened from the inside in case of a fire or emergency.
School staff and law enforcement know their roles and responsibilities under these circumstances. Just like fire drills and tornado drills are practiced to prepare students to respond appropriately to a given situation, lockdown drills are also practiced. When we do have to initiate a lockdown procedure, parents and students will be notified sometime later that day.
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What's Next?
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New Davie County Schools website coming soon...
5-Year Strategic Plan coming soon...
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Darrin L. Hartness, Ed. D.
Superintendent
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