Safety remains the highest priority for Cobb Schools, as Superintendent Chris Ragsdale assures families in the in-depth video highlights below from his conversation with Felicia Wagner, Executive Director of the Cobb Schools Foundation.
A $35 Million Commitment
As Superintendent Ragsdale explains, no cost is too high when it comes to the safety of Cobb students.
“For the past ten years, we have spent approximately $35 million per year on safety. Is that enough? Is it ever enough? I don't think you can put a price tag on safety. Especially when you're talking about a child’s safety or a staff member’s safety. I don't think you can put a price tag on that,” Superintendent Ragsdale declared.
The District continuously evaluates its strategies and investments in products, personnel, and preparedness to address modern threats. Safety comes first, and the district will continue to invest whatever is necessary to protect students and staff.
“We have to make sure that we are prepared, as best we can be,” he said.
Talking Safety Measures, including Code Red Drills
Superintendent Ragsdale speaks to the district’s robust safety measures, including partnerships with local law enforcement and federal agencies like the FBI. The ability for staff to initiate a code red is a game-changer, shaving critical minutes off response times in emergencies.
He also mentions Cobb’s team of experienced school resource officers and K-9 units, who run toward danger and conduct more code red drills than required to ensure everyone is prepared in the event of a real crisis.
The goal is that the code red drills become muscle memory, like fire drills, so students and staff are prepared in the case of a crisis.
How Columbine Changed the Way We Do School
“Columbine changed the way we do school forever,” said Superintendent Ragsdale. “Everyone in a public school knows what happened on that day in Columbine. It changed the way that we have school. Up until then, nobody really thought about safety when you sent your child to school.”
In Cobb, safety measures are proactive to try and prevent an incident before it happens.
“What we want to do is make sure our parents are comfortable when they bring or send their child to the Cobb County School District,” said Superintendent Chris Ragsdale.
Responding to Threats
Again, Superintendent Ragsdale wants Cobb parents to know, and feel confident, that the safety of their students is our top priority.
When a threat is reported, the District responds as if it is real.
“It's never taken as a prank. We always go to the full extent of investigating these threats. Once the originator of the threat is determined, there are legal implications to that, as far as criminal charges as well as school discipline. We take those very seriously, and we never consider a threat to be false until it's been fully investigated,” Superintendent Ragsdale said assuredly.
Superintendent Ragsdale cautioned families about the dangers of misinformation on social media. He encouraged them not to share concerning information they see but instead immediately report it to the District’s tipline.
“When you think about information that is not true, spreading to millions of people within seconds, that makes a bad situation infinitely worse, especially when we're talking about threats,” added Superintendent Ragsdale.
Dealing with Bullying
“Bullying is real, and we take it very seriously. We do not allow bullying of any type. Regardless of what the nature of the bullying is. We address it head-on. We address it quickly,” Superintendent Ragsdale said.
Cobb has programs like “Expect Respect” that provide students and staff the support they need to prevent bullying.
“What we have done is we have taken all of the ideas from our counselors, our teachers, our administrators, and we actually developed, in response to the bullying situation, we developed our own programs,” the Superintendent added.
Staying Accurately Informed
If a crisis happens, the Superintendent wants families to know the District is prepared; our team trains and plans for emergencies. Families can count on that.
While communication is a priority, Superintendent Ragsdale stresses that the accuracy of information takes precedence over speed to prevent the spread of misinformation. Families can help by bookmarking the District’s communications channels and making sure their contact information is updated in the Cobb Teaching and Learning System (CTLS).
“We will communicate if there is an event; we will communicate that very quickly. However detailed information, we're going to make sure we get it right because we don't want to be part of the perpetuation of false information. So, we're going to make sure we're communicating hand in hand with law enforcement agencies," Superintendent Ragsdale explained.
If families have concerns, see something concerning on social media, or hear something alarming from another parent or student, please report it to the District’s 24/7 tip line.
Officers' Response Protocol
If there is an incident at a school, there’s protocol in place that leads to the response, not only of Cobb Schools police officers but also of partnering law enforcement agencies.
Cobb’s public safety team collaborates and trains with partner agencies to prepare for a code red emergency so “everybody knows what to expect in walking into a school that is under a code red.”
How Parents and the Community can Help
Superintendent Ragsdale encourages parents to get involved and volunteer, whether through the Cobb Schools Foundation or their local school.
“It's just amazing to see what volunteers are able to do in our schools,” Superintendent Ragsdale said. “It truly is a team effort.”
Confidentiality of Safety Plans
“While it is hard for parents not to see and hear all of the details about everything we're doing, that's part of the safety process, keeping that information confidential. We talk about the collaboration with different agencies, but how we do that, that we're never going to talk about," Superintendent Ragsdale explained.
Superintendent Ragsdale understands that parents want to know exactly what the District is doing to keep their students safe. However, providing details on exactly how and what the District does to keep students and staff safe would be “reckless.”
Use of Safety Technologies
The District cannot reveal all the safety technologies, inside and outside schools, that keep students and staff safe. However, Superintendent Ragsdale explains how the District uses the same Evolv weapons detection system that large sporting venues use.
“I think there's a lot of proactive things, not just the products and the technologies and things, but I think there's going to be a lot of proactive processes that can be implemented. That's really going to boost our level of safety and security for both staff and students moving forward,” Superintendent Ragsdale said.