As many are grieving today, our thoughts, prayers and condolences go out to families who lost loved ones and the entire Uvalde community. We are working to support the Uvalde Independent School District during this unthinkable tragedy and have sent a team of Northside counselors who will support teams there in the days to come. As needs arise, we will continue to offer our resources, personnel, and time.
In Northside, safety is always one of our top priorities. We have well-established safety protocols which we will continue to follow that include:
- Bullet resistant security lobbies and access control technology at every elementary school providing a single point of entry
- Digital video surveillance systems at all Northside schools and on all school buses which are monitored by the NISD Police Dept.
- Lockdown protocols that can be activated throughout any building
- Regularly conducted emergency drills
- Secure classroom door hardware so classrooms can be locked quickly in case of an emergency
- Fully-commissioned police officers assigned to every secondary campus and to elementary clusters
- Campus-specific emergency operations plans that detail staff roles and responsibilities, response protocols and communication processes in emergency situations
These tragedies also remind us it takes all of us working together to keep our students and staff safe. The Northside Police Department works in collaboration with local law enforcement agencies to investigate every threat. We encourage parents and families to have regular conversations about reporting threats and responsible social media use. You can report a threat or other safety concern to our Safeline hotline 24 hours a day at 210-397-SAFE.
We know this is a difficult time and leaves many of us shaken. If your child needs support, please reach out to their campus counselor. As we learn of ways the Northside community can support Uvalde ISD we will let you know. Please know that we are committed to providing a safe and secure learning environment for our students and staff, and we will continue to do so.
Dr. Brian Woods
Superintendent