[BHS Etree] ADMIN: March 14th at Berkeley High School

[BHS Etree]

Good Afternoon BHS Families,



I'm writing this afternoon with a few updates relevant to next week at Berkeley High School. I also want you all to know that our lockdown drill this past Tuesday went extremely well. Students and staff took it very seriously, and we were able to lockdown our entire school in five minutes. We took a lot of really helpful feedback from students and staff and that will shape and improve our practices for next time.



And now, in the spirit of prevention and action, I want you to know how Berkeley High will be participating in the nationwide action<https://www.actionnetwork.org/event_campaigns/enough-national-school-walkout> that will take place in support of gun control laws and in honor of the victims of Parkland, Florida on Wednesday, March 14th. Several staff have been speaking with student leaders as planning has taken shape for this day, and I want to share with you a general sense of what we expect to happen that morning, and how we would appreciate your support.



After morning announcements (approx 9:45), many/most students will likely head to the courtyard to be prepared for the 10:00 start time for the event. Student leaders there will be speaking in honor of the 17 victims in Florida. After some time of speaking, students will be invited to move to the field, where a "spell-out" of a peace sign will take place, along with more speaking. Then, depending on time, students will dismiss to 3rd period or lunch and return for afternoon classes. Rain is predicted for this day, so we will have to see how that affects the plans.



We respect and support the first amendment rights of our students to advocate for causes that are important to them, and we also anticipate a high level of media interest in this event. Our district Public Information Officer will be on site that day managing the media presence, but we want you to know that it is possible that your student might be approached to be filmed or interviewed either on or off campus. If you do not want your student to be interviewed, please discuss your preferences with your student, and we will reinforce that message as well. We also know from experience that not all students are comfortable participating in mass events like this and will need safe spots in classrooms to remain. To that end, we will ensure that there are safety staff, teachers and administrators both with the students who remain in the classroom buildings as well as the participants in the action.



Finally, many of you have asked how you can support our students on this day. Another email will follow from our parent volunteer coordinator with more details, but I can report that our student leadership has pre-identified two areas of need: donations of poster/sign making materials are welcome, as are parent volunteers to join us on campus that day and help with logistics. Again, more to come.



Thank you for reading and have a wonderful weekend,



Erin Schweng

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