Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Louisville are mandated to have a written plan for emergency management — updated each year — and school leaders are regularly updated on the latest school safety standards, said Amy Nall, superintendent of Catholic schools.
“We are ensuring our community, our parents, but really the whole community who loves and supports our schools, that our number one priority is always the safety of the student,” said Nall in a recent phone interview.
After a gunman opened fire on a school Mass in Minneapolis Aug. 27, killing two children and injuring 18 people, Nall discussed how the archdiocese and its schools approach school safety.
“I hope that it provides some comfort,” said Nall. “We take it very, very seriously because the safety of the individual student is our responsibility, and we always want to follow best practices.”
“We are ensuring our community, our parents, but really the whole community who love and support our schools, that our number one priority is always the safety of the student.”
— Amy Nall, superintendent of Catholic schools
The Archdiocese of Louisville’s Office of Catholic Schools works with the Kentucky Center for School Safety. The center, created by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1998, provides guidance and support to promote safe schools around the commonwealth.
“They help us with updates on legislation, best practices for physical safety, they provide training,” Nall said of the center’s staff. “They inform us on the importance of safe social media for the emotional safety of our children. And they help us on culture and climate, so it’s a safe place.”
The center provides training each summer, which archdiocesan staff attends, and the center’s staff is available to tour school facilities to help leaders identify hazards. It also provides a template for a school emergency management plan, which Archdiocese of Louisville schools are required to update each year and turn into the archdiocesan Office of Catholic Schools.
“It goes all the way from prevention to protection to mitigation to response to recovery. It walks you through everything you would need,” said Nall. “It has what to do if a threat is made against the school, what to do if there’s a gas leak, how to handle a suicide. It’s a comprehensive guide for school safety, and it guides us through the creation of a school safety plan.”
For example, schools are expected to draft a list of all those who would need assistance during an evacuation. Schools are also meant to make an inventory of staff skills so they know who can help in certain types of emergencies, such as emergency medical skills and hazardous materials handling.
“We are vigilant about the accountability,” Nall said. “We all take school safety seriously.”
Nall said the Kentucky Center for School Safety emphasizes three things, which are important both for schools and families to keep in mind:
- Relationship — “Know your students and know your families,” Nall said.
- Lock your doors — “We always need to keep our doors locked, our front doors, our classroom doors,” she said.
- Be vigilant — “If something doesn’t feel right, say something,” she added.
For parents who may be feeling nervous, she said, “Have a relationship with your child — make sure you’re talking to them about safety. It’s not just their physical, but their emotional safety.”
Also, “Have relationships at school — know the teachers, participate, be an active volunteer,” she said. “I really think it’s about those relationships, partnering with the school and talking with your son or daughter.”
