Joseph Dits and Ed Semmler, South Bend Tribune
Whenever a school shooter strikes, many question how the gunman escaped detection before the shooting.
To minimize that possibility, Elkhart Community School officials try to know each of their 12,900 students in kindergarten through high school. And to know more than just a name. It has been a formal directive since 2016, when the district included it in a strategic plan.
“We want each student connected with someone who can see how their day is going, their after-school activities, schoolwork and sports,” said Tony England, assistant superintendent of student services.
England said this is relatively easy in the primary grades where each student is with the same teacher most of the day. It’s a little more challenging in upper grades when students switch teachers for each class. But the extra engagement has paid off, he said, emphasizing “a lot of hard work in the high schools,” with a graduation rate that rose to 91.7 percent.
As he reflects on Wednesday’s shooting at a high school in Parkland, Fla. that killed 17 people, he said, it “makes anyone in education really think about the measures we have in place to ensure we’re connecting with students and protecting them as well.”
In the South Bend Community School Corp., the goal is that each student makes a connection with staff, no matter if it’s a teacher, cafeteria worker or bus driver, said Christine Pochert, director of student services.