CODE: 5142
SECTION: PUPILS
PUPIL SAFETY
The West Milford Board of Education
recognizes the safety of its pupils as a consideration of utmost importance. The
Superintendent of Schools shall maintain all facilities and equipment in proper
condition to provide a safe learning environment, ensuring compliance with state
law on the handling, labeling and storing of hazardous substances.
The Superintendent of Schools shall oversee development of a districtwide safety
program with emphasis on accident prevention. All teachers shall be familiar
with the provisions of this program that particularly concern them. Regulations
concerning use and maintenance of eye protective devices shall be scrupulously
enforced by all staff.
The Superintendent of Schools shall inform all staff of school safety rules and
regulations at the beginning of the school year and shall post copies of the
rules in a prominent place in each school. Special emphasis shall be given to
accident prevention and precautionary measures in case of fire.
The staff must maintain complete classroom and playground supervision during
regular school hours. The Superintendent of Schools shall seek the cooperation
of parents/guardians to prevent any children being unsupervised on school
property during morning arrival and afternoon dismissal times. Further, the
Superintendent of Schools shall seek the cooperation of the police and other
appropriate agencies in providing for the safety of pupils on or around school
property and during arrival and dismissal times as outlined on the school
district’s calendar.
No pupil shall leave the school before the end of the school day without
permission of the parents/guardians and the principal or designee. No pupil
shall run errands on school business off the school property.
The curriculum shall include courses in safety as required by state law. The
Superintendent of Schools shall oversee development and implementation of a
vocational education safety program correlated with course work. In development
of courses, the safety of participating pupils shall be a primary consideration.
A record shall be kept indicating the legal custodian of each pupil. Such
custodian shall be responsible for informing the Principal of any change in the
pupil's custody. If one parent/guardian has been awarded custody of the pupil in
a divorce, the other parent/ guardian shall present to the principal a letter
authorizing him/her to accompany the child from school before the child may be
released. The principal may take reasonable steps to verify the letter. It is
the responsibility of the person or agency having custody to inform the school
that such authorization will be required.
Voluntary Identification Programs
The Board of Education may provide a voluntary fingerprinting or photo
identification program for the protection of its pupils. These programs shall be
carried out in cooperation with the local law enforcement officials in
accordance with the requirements of law.
All pupils in grades junior kindergarten through six shall be eligible to
participate with written authorization of their parent/guardian or temporary
caretaker. Completed fingerprint cards shall be given to the parent/guardian or
temporary caretaker, and shall not be retained by the school district or the law
enforcement agency.
Potentially Missing Children
Attendance practices, the dismissal precautions addressed in this policy,
voluntary fingerprinting, and photo identification programs are part of the
district's effort toward early identification of potentially missing children.
Release to an Individual Impaired by Drugs/Alcohol Prohibited
The Board believes that allowing a child to be released into the custody of a
parent/guardian or other individual who appears to be impaired by drugs or
alcohol can have tragic consequences. Therefore, the board prohibits release of
a pupil into the custody of any person who appears to be physically and/or
emotionally impaired to the extent that harm could come to the pupil if released
to such a person. The Superintendent of Schools/designee shall make the final
determination as to whether an individual is impaired. If the parent/guardian or
other individual, who appears to be impaired by drugs or alcohol, does not
cooperate with school officials, the local police department will be called for
assistance.
Possessions
Parents/guardians are requested not to permit their children to bring expensive
or fragile objects to school and to label or otherwise identify clothing, books
and personal items. The board is not responsible for items destroyed or stolen
from lockers, desks, or classrooms.
Megan's Law
Only law enforcement agencies in the community receive notification of the
presence of Tier One offenders. The Superintendent of Schools and principals in
affected schools shall receive notification from the county prosecutor's office
or local law enforcement officials when Tier Two or Tier Three sex offenders
move into the district. Principals shall inform those employees/ volunteers
whose duties regularly put them in a position to observe unauthorized persons on
or near the property of the school. Principals shall determine who to notify on
the basis of this definition, as well as on specific job duties carried out in
their schools. If private vendors perform any of these functions, the principal
shall inform the vendor. Notification may include, but is not limited to:
A. Aides
B. Bus drivers
C. Coaches
D. Maintenance staff
E. Professional support staff
F. School level administrative staff
G. Security personnel
H. Teachers' aides
I. Teachers
When a person is classified as a Tier 2 offender, notices are provided to school
and community organization personnel so that they can take all appropriate steps
to protect those children and others under their supervision. For schools, the
principal signs the receipt form and receives an Unredacted and a Redacted
Notice. The principal can then share the Unredacted Notice with other personnel
if he or she feels there is a particular need to do so and if that other
individual also signs a receipt form. The principal should share such notice
with any person who, in the course of the duties of his or her employment, is
regularly in a position to observe unauthorized persons on or near the property
of the notified school. Alternatively, the principal can distribute the Redacted
Notice without the need to have the receipt form signed.
School personnel are notified only in their capacity as such and shall not
disseminate information about an offender to anyone not specifically identified
by the county prosecutor or Attorney General. Any school employee who does so
may be disciplined.
If a school employee has reason to believe that an offender who has been the
subject of a notification is a danger to someone outside the school environs,
he/she shall immediately contact the local law enforcement agency or the county
prosecutor.
District personnel shall not notify the following of the presence of Tier Two or
Tier Three offenders:
A. Members of PTO, PTA, HSA, etc.
B. Organizations using school facilities
C. Other schools
D. Press
The principal shall provide registration forms to any organization that uses the
school facilities, including parent-teacher organizations, that wishes to be
notified by the county prosecutor's office of the presence of a Tier Two or Tier
Three offender in the community.
In addition to the school personnel identified by the principal, students and
parents/guardians shall be notified of the presence of Tier Three offenders. The
prosecutor's office and local law enforcement shall supply the school with
notices for them when a school is located in the area where a vulnerable
population is likely to encounter a Tier Three offender. Dissemination of these
notices shall be in accordance with law and accomplished in cooperation with the
county prosecutor's office. Confidentiality shall be a prime consideration in
all communication with students and parents/guardians, and all directives of the
county prosecutor and Attorney General's offices shall be observed.
When a student has been identified as a sex offender, all procedures of
notification shall apply. When a parent/guardian has been identified as an
offender, he/she may continue to participate in all appropriate parent/guardian
activities, unless prohibited by legal constraint.
Newly hired staff and newly enrolled students and their parents/guardians shall
be trained and informed of the presence of Tier Two and Tier Three offenders,
unless the county prosecutor has notified the principal that notice can no
longer be given.
Students and district employees shall not be liable in any civil or criminal
action for providing or failing to provide information relevant to notification.
The Superintendent of Schools shall prepare regulations to implement this policy
and all directives of the county prosecutor's office to ensure careful adherence
to Megan's Law.
First Reading: August 28, 2007
Adopted: September 25, 2007