Superintendent Update for 01/12/2022
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Community Update: Wednesday, January 12th
Panther Families,
As we get ready to end the school day, I wanted to provide another Palmyra update that is a bit more specific than the one I sent out earlier today.
Palmyra Situation Update:
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Thanks to all of you for your understanding and flexibility in dealing with the situation this morning in Palmyra. Any time there is a change in schedule or an unexpected event (especially something that could be identified as a possible threat), we want to do everything we can to get information to you as quickly as possible, but our first priority is making sure our students and staff are safe.
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With the availability and instant accessibility of social media, being first with news is often not feasible, and we understand and accept that fact. However, accuracy with the information being distributed is always our goal, and I appreciate your patience this morning as we sorted out exactly what was going on and how to best address the situation and information we were provided.
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Although the situation was confined to Palmyra this morning, it did have an impact on both buildings, and through the collective efforts of our administration and transportation staff, we were able to find effective transportation solutions for our students traveling between buildings and ensure safe entrance into the high school.
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Our high school staff did a tremendous job of collaboratively working together directing traffic, rerouting student entrance points, supervising, distributing information, and accommodating student needs so that we could safely bring students into the building and get started with school. To this end, I want to personally thank our bus drivers, teachers, food service personnel, and our support staff for their extra efforts this morning to make this plan work. Great job!
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The decision to have a 10:00 a.m. late start at the high school this morning was predicated on the fact that there was not a direct threat to the school or our students at that building. In communication and cooperation with the Otoe County Sheriff’s Department (and based on the information we were provided at the time), I made the decision to have students attend school in Palmyra beginning at 10:00 a.m.
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As students and families arrived in Palmyra from the west end of town (near the Casey's entrance), they were rerouted to the east and south end of town to avoid the area of the incident. Once all students were safely inside the high school building, the decision was made to move to a “Secure” mode until the law enforcement situation was satisfactorily resolved.
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Additionally, with the neighborhood situation located directly north of the building, our staff also worked collaboratively to move all students and classes on the north side of the building away from exterior windows. After these procedures were put in place, we continued with our school day. After we were notified that the neighborhood situation was resolved, we shifted back into normal operations and continued the day.
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In summary, our students and staff did an outstanding job of handling this abrupt change in schedule with flexibility, collaboration, and professionalism. Great teamwork!
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Finally, special thanks to our Otoe County law enforcement officials, the Nebraska State Patrol, and our local Palmyra first responders for their communication, collaboration, and diligence in keeping our community safe.
Have a great rest of your day,
Mike
Go Panthers!
