The following letter from Superintendent Jeff Simons was sent to all staff and parents/guardians on Monday, September 11.
Dear EGCSD Community:
Earlier this morning I was informed by Goff Middle School staff of a voicemail message left last night that indicated a threat against East Greenbush Central Schools for today. Upon hearing the message this morning, we immediately notified police and reached out to each school building, other school districts and law enforcement jurisdictions to determine if other school districts received similar messages. As you may recall, the lockdown on March 30 included similar threats to multiple school districts in our area. We determined that no other school districts received threats for today and it was limited to our school district.
We initiated a district-wide Secured Lockout at approximately 8:05 a.m. this morning, which allowed for the Columbia and Goff school days to continue as normal but with no outdoor activities and limited visitor access.
The elementary school bus runs were already underway, so we redirected buses to our confidential staging areas away from schools until police could arrive and facilitate a safe arrival. This protocol was added to our safety plans in April following the lockdown on March 30.
Within minutes, law enforcement officers from multiple jurisdictions were at each of our schools which allowed for our buses and parents/guardians to drop off students. Each of the elementary schools were able to start their normal instructional day within a relatively short period of time.
In collaboration with law enforcement, an investigation determined that the threat was not credible. However, out of an abundance of caution, our schools will remain in a Secured Lockout for the rest of the school day. We will also have an increased police presence at all schools.
Parents/guardians and visitors are permitted at our schools by buzzing into the school and showing ID to staff in the security vestibule. After school activities including athletics will go on as scheduled.
Today’s incident is a reminder of the importance of our safety plans and procedures. We appreciate the response from our students, staff and families. We also thank law enforcement for their support.
Should you have any questions or concerns regarding the district’s response to today’s incident please contact me.
Thank you for your cooperation this morning. We will continue to do everything we can to keep students, employees and visitors safe.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Simons
Superintendent of Schools