Delaware's school safety upgrades with new maps, updated safety plan: Education roundup
Delaware is celebrating some new achievements in school safety and preparedness ahead of the next school year — from high-resolution maps for hundreds of schools, to the first updated comprehensive plan in over a decade.
In this roundup, we'll try to catch you up on some education headlines you may have missed.
Did we miss another good story? Tell me about it: kepowers@gannett.com.
Delaware marks new school safety achievements
The state's "Comprehensive School Safety Program" shared the completion of a few significant initiatives by mid-July.
New, high-resolution maps for every public school
Standard response and reunification training implementation in each district
And, the release of a new comprehensive school safety plan to all 231 public and charter schools.
This comes as school safety has been a top concern across the country, throughout the state and in Legislative Hall. The new safety plan is the first major update for the First State since the creation of the program in 2012.
Delaware is actually the first state to complete these high-resolution digital blueprints of all school buildings and grounds for every public and charter school within its borders.
"The new school maps will enable law enforcement and first responders to react swiftly in the event of an emergency," explained Delaware's Emergency Management Agency in a recent press release, detailing the $1 million project launched last fall.
Maps will be continuously updated and shared with emergency officials, law enforcement and schools.
As for trainings, Delaware has completed a statewide adoption of “Standard Response Protocol” — or hold, secure, lockdown, evacuate and shelter — and the “Standard Reunification Method,” according to DEMA, considered a gold standard in responding and reuniting students with parents or guardians during any crisis.
Some 221 instructors have finished their training and 145 are scheduled for the next workshop in August.
DEMA says the goal for CSSP and a safety plan is to "promote a coordinated approach between state and local emergency responders, education professionals and other support agencies during a critical incident in a school setting."
Catch up: Here are the bills Delaware lawmakers prioritized this year – plus some that didn't pass
Capital schools announces grand opening of 'Capital Community Center'
Next month, Capital School District will unveil its Capital Community Center.
Tucked into 109 North West Street, the center will open to all district families in need of support services, the district announced last week. Onsite resources will include a clothing closet with brand-new clothes and shoes and a food pantry with refrigerated and frozen food. A school supply closet will also be available to families.
“How we show up for our most vulnerable students and their families is a baseline for how we support every student, staff member and parent," said Vilicia Cade, CEO and superintendent, in a statement. "This center operationalized a collective moral imperative that underscores the intersection of our schools, our children and our future."
She called the center an expansion of the district's efforts to serve "the whole child."
'They want to be here': Delaware culinary program gets adults with disabilities cooking
Delaware ranks No. 8 in the nation on ACT scores
Analysts at Learner, a company offering tutors and academic counselors, took a look at ACT data throughout the nation to find out which states have the highest — and lowest — test scores.
Delaware came in the top-10, landing at No. 8 in the 2023 rankings with an average score of 24.9. The standardized test is taken by millions of students each year.
District of Columbia: 26.9
California: 26.5 Massachusetts: 26.5
Connecticut: 26.3
New Hampshire: 25.7
New York: 25.3
Rhode Island: 25.2
Maine: 25.1
Delaware: 24.9
Michigan: 24.6 New Jersey: 24.6Virginia: 24.6Washington: 24.6
Illinois: 24.5
Oklahoma, Mississippi and Nevada rounded out the bottom of the list with scores around 17 points.
Have a story? Kelly Powers covers race, culture and equity for the USA TODAY Network's Northeast Region and Delaware Online/The News Journal, with a focus on education. Contact her at kepowers@gannett.com or (231) 622-2191, and follow her on Twitter @kpowers01.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: Delaware marks first major update in school safety plan in over decade
