Dear Liberty,

Spring is here and our schools are brimming with activity.

We welcome and encourage our community to support our students in their athletic, academic and fine art endeavors. However, we are all responsible for making sure our campuses remain a safe place in which to learn.

I want to remind you of the steps that we take to help keep everyone safe on our school campuses.

We appreciate the support our athletes receive, but there are certain rules spectators must follow. We adhere to the New York State Public High School Athletic Association guidelines, which encourage positivity, support and sportsmanship. The full NYSPHSAA policy can be found here.

We also do not allow any tobacco, alcohol, marijuana or other drug use on school grounds.

And while we love our pets, they aren’t allowed on our campuses.

Staff members are onsite during all contests and they will ask those who violate our policies to be in compliance or they will be asked to leave.

Interior safety is also important. Entry to our buildings requires keycard access. Visitors are restricted to a single point of entry in each building. All visitors are required to show a valid ID at an automated kiosk before entering any of our school buildings, and visitors will be buzzed in. Read more at https://www.libertyk12.org/visiting-procedures/

All classrooms require keycard access as well, and doors are expected to remain closed and locked when occupied.

Through our updated door lock system, school officials are able to immediately lock all doors if there is an emergency. As part of the lockdown system, digital signs throughout common areas will help inform students and staff of what is happening. There are also strobe lights inside and outside the building, which will help alert of emergencies and advise those outside the building not to enter. If an emergency occurs, the Liberty Police Department is able to monitor school cameras if a lockdown takes place.

We have also continued our partnership with LPD, placing a school resource officer in each building. They regularly patrol and check for vulnerabilities and are a valuable resource to students and staff.

When it comes to safety, we do have a plan. Our district safety plan, which is updated yearly, can be seen at https://www.libertyk12.org/district-wide-safety-plan/. Our faculty and staff are trained in what to do in the event of an emergency, and our schools have emergency drills several times a year.

As always, we encourage our school community to be proactive in safety with the adage “see something, say something.” We have long had an anonymous alert system, where safety concerns could be reported, at https://asp.schoolmessenger.com/liberty/quicktip/.

Safety for our students and staff is always one of the top priorities for Liberty Central School District, and we appreciate our community’s support.

Sincerely,
Dr. Patrick Sullivan
Superintendent