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Dear LNC Families,
At Lake Norman Charter, our first and foremost responsibility is to keep our students and staff safe. This communication covers our safety procedures against any potential physical threats at our school. Please read the following carefully and save it where you can easily find and refer to it.
Following are the proactive steps that we are or have taken to keep our schools safe, followed by measures that we are asking you, our parents, to take at home.
What LNC is Doing to Help Keep Students Safe:
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For the sixth consecutive year, we are funding the safety resource officer position so HPD Officer Bononno (Officer Bo) may remain dedicated to our school, where he can get to know our school and students through initiatives and programs like those below as well as everyday interactions. We are fortunate to have both this position and the continuity of Officer Bo.
- K/1st grade – Dangers in the home, recognizing emotions in your peers and “stranger danger"
- 3rd grade – Interpersonal communication, bullying, conflict resolution
- 5th grade – O.H.A.N.A. – Weighing risks and consequences of decision-making, bullying and interaction with police
- 7th grade – Internet safety and the consequences of cyberbullying
- 9th grade – (through health class) Substance abuse, opioid effects, teenage dating violence (accordance with SL 2019-245)
- 10th grade – Sex trafficking prevention, best practices when you encounter police while driving a vehicle
- 11th grade – Teenage dating violence, part II
- 12th grade – College risks and prevention
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Cup of Joe with Officer Bo - LNC SRO Officer Bo is meeting with parents to explain the security measures LNC has in place to protect your students, including updates to our processes in response to recent events, and how we monitor and adjust our procedures in response to changes in best practices. He will discuss carpool and there will be a question and answer opportunity. Coffee and doughnuts will be available. We encourage ALL parents to attend:
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HS: Friday, September 9 at 8:00am in the HS student commons
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ES: Friday, September 16 at 8:30am in the ES multipurpose room
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MS: Friday, September 23 at 8:15am in the MS community room
- We are continuing our relationship with the Huntersville Police Department, including its K-9 unit, to keep our schools free of drugs and weapons and collaborating with them on our school safety plan.
- We are constantly reassessing our safety procedures using learnings gleaned from current events.
- Recently, the internal and external cameras at our main campus were upgraded to include technology that allows HPD to access our cameras in the event of an emergency.
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Thanks to the support of our families through the Elevate LNC project, our MS office has been redesigned to include a secure vestibule with a second set of locked doors and a sliding window. This allows the great majority of our parents who are on campus for a quick transaction to do so efficiently and prevents anyone who should not gain access to our school from getting it. Also thanks to parent partnership, the HS too is outfitted with a secure vestibule with a second set of locked doors and a sliding window.
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We hold regular drills so students and staff know what to do in true crisis situations, including some at unexpected and unconventional times so students and staff practice in various scenarios. Understanding that for our youngest Knights safety drills can be frightening, Officer Bo wrote a book to share with our elementary students on code red drills.
- As part of our MS Digital Citizenship training, 6th grade students receive instruction on online safety and 8th grade students learn about the importance of their digital footprint as well as privacy and security online.
- Because of our smaller school size, we are able to know our students, including their social circles, mental state and emotional circumstances, well enough to recognize a problem or negative change.
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We are continuing our partnership with Novant Health to offer Dr. Danielle Graham as an additional support for our students' mental health and well-being. You can read more about Dr. Danielle Graham's role here.
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We are continuing our “See Something, Say Something” program that encourages students who have concerns about themselves or their friends or become aware of important information to feel comfortable and empowered to tell a trusted adult or utilize the Say Something app (6th to 12th grades). You can find the link here.
What We Ask Parents to Do
- Respect our safety procedures and policies when on our campuses, including giving your undivided attention to staff during carpool.
- Foster open and ongoing dialog with your students so that you are aware of their daily interactions, how they are coping, etc. and reinforce “see something, say something” by encouraging them to reach out to their counselor or our mental health professional Dr. Danielle Graham if they need support or guidance.
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LNC Emergency Procedures
While prevention is our goal, we must also plan and prepare for a true threat on our campuses.
A Code Red lockdown ensues if a serious and immediate threat is identified at our school. If this situation occurred, here is what you need to know:
- All interior doors are locked with students and staff sheltered inside and absolutely no one other than first responders are permitted to enter or leave the building. This will remain the case until the managing law enforcement agency lifts the lockdown.
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As soon as we are able, LNC will communicate information through all available communications channels, including text, email, Schoology post, Twitter and our website. Be sure to notify the school if any of your contact information changes through our Student Information Update Form.
- If you become aware of a lockdown on campus DO NOT dial 911 as it is crucial that phone lines remain open for emergency communications.
- Do NOT come to the school – it is vital that roadways near and on campus remain open for emergency vehicles.
- If we had a serious safety incident, parents would be directed to either the Huntersville Business Park or to an alternative designated area that we communicate. Students will be transported to this staging area once the lockdown has been lifted.
- If there were an incident at either the HS or MS, our entire main campus would go on lockdown, however the ES campus would not. Conversely, if there were an incident at the ES campus causing a lockdown, the main campus would not go on lockdown.
- All of our families will be notified, regardless of the campus their student is on, should either of our campuses go on lockdown.
A Code Yellow status occurs if there is police activity is in the area, however not on campus. If this situation occurred, here is what you need to know:
- Regular instruction continues, but students remain inside the building (no outside activity).
- No visitors are permitted to enter or leave the building. This will remain the case until the managing law enforcement agency lifts the Code Yellow status.
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LNC will communicate the Code Yellow status through all available communications channels, including text, email, Schoology post, Twitter and our website.
- All of our families will be notified, regardless of the campus their student is on, should either of our campuses go on a Code Yellow status.
- If there were an incident that triggered a Code Yellow status near the HS or MS, our entire main campus would go on Code Yellow, however the ES campus would not. Conversely, if there were an incident near the ES campus causing a Code Yellow, the main campus would not go on this status.
- If you become aware of a Code Yellow status, DO NOT dial 911 or come to school as it is important that phone lines and roadways remain open for emergency purposes.
We will continue our safety drills so students and staff know what to do in the event of a true emergency and adjust our safety processes to align with best practices as needed. We appreciate your cooperation and support of our procedures intended to keep all LNC students and staff safe.
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Lake Norman Charter School - 704-948-8600
www.LNCharter.org
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