Wheeling Park School Improvement Council Discusses Lockdown Logistics
Joselyn King Trending
Members of Wheeling Park High School’s Local School Improvement Council met Monday to discuss a variety of issues pertaining to the school and its operation, including logistics surrounding the recent incident that led to a "code red" lockdown.
On Nov. 17, Wheeling Park High School went into a "code red" lockdown for about two hours before school and law enforcement officials determined that there was no credible threat. The situation stemmed from a seemingly threatening post on social media that spread and became a rumor in the community.
The lockdown was lifted soon after being implemented, but the disruption led to an early dismissal that day. In light of school tragedies across the nation that all too often make headlines, situations like a lockdown on the local school campus can be frightening for parents and students while they are unfolding -- even if they turn out to be false alarms.
"The best thing that comes out of it is the conversation, and the reality, and the ability to say ‘we need to work on this -- this went well, but that didn’t,’" WPHS Principal Meredith Dailer said. "We haven’t had that type of situation where we went into lockdown since ... I can’t remember. I taught here for 10 years, and I was gone for three, and I know they didn’t have one then. So it’s a rare occurrence."
Dailer said it is challenging to prepare for these types of situations because of the unpredictability of the outcome, as every incident is unique, and the response to it takes place at a very fast pace. School officials met with teachers and law enforcement officials a number of times since the incident, having several conversations and getting input from different perspectives about the incident.
"One of the biggest challenges we had was that parents came to the building, and that was really hard to manage," Dailer said. "I’m a parent, I get it. But when we deem the situation where it needs to be a lockdown, we kind of have to hold firm that the building and the campus is locked down. And that’s for a reason. It’s not safe for us to go out and get your children at this time. As soon as it is, we’ll make that happen."
Dailer said even with drills in the future, officers will block the intersection, and the campus will be locked down. The White Palace will be used as a staging area in anticipation of an evacuation.
A "code red" lockdown and an active shooter situation are different situations with different responses, Dailer explained.
The recent situation was unfolding quickly, and during that time, misinformation about the situation was also making its way onto social media - false information such as rumors about guns being in the building, creating the potential for panic. Dailer said officials are working to make sure messages from the school and law enforcement are coordinated in the future to help quash misinformation during emergency situations.
"In the future, we will put out a joint statement," Dailer said, noting there are logistic pieces that the school can improve upon to more effectively keep parents informed and on the same page as school and law enforcement officials.
A safety specialist is coming to work with school officials in January to assist in emergency response situations.
Members of the LSIC also discussed other topics during Monday’s meeting, including the group’s goals for this school year. The group has meetings scheduled every other month and is made up of school administrators, parents, teachers and other people whose input could help improve the school.
"It’s a community," Dailer said. "It’s a mix of parents, businesses, teachers, paraprofessionals, administration -- because of that mix, it’s just a great cross-reference on topics throughout the building."
Each school is required to have an LSIC, which meets at least four times per school year. The Wheeling Park High School LSIC scheduled meetings in September, late November, early February and early May. The next meeting is scheduled to take place at 4 p.m. Feb. 6.