Upper Dauphin Area Safety and Security
Phone: 717-362-8181
Safety & Security Director: Safety and Security
The Upper Dauphin Area School District (UDASD) takes the safety and security of its students and staff very seriously. As such, the UDASD implements an All-Hazards Plan, Safety Committee, Chemical Management System and other efforts to ensure that students can learn in a safe and secure environment.
The UDASD also works closely with the Pennsylvania State Police, local fire companies and emergency medical services (EMS), local municipalities, Dauphin County Department of Public Safety and surrounding school districts to help ensure a state of readiness for a variety of different types of emergency situations.
All-Hazards Plan
The All-Hazards Plan contains information about how the UDASD will address the key components of emergency management: prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery. Each of these areas are important and the UDASD spends a lot of time each year ensuring readiness through training and testing efforts. The All-Hazards concept means that the UDASD will be able to respond to all types of emergencies–even those it has not included in its plan. Due to the nature of the All-Hazards Plan, the contents are considered ‘Operational Security’ and are not made available to the general public.
A subset of information is made available in the Emergency Management Guide for Parents. Parents are encouraged to review this information each year with their child to help them be part of the emergency management process.
Chemical Management
The UDASD uses MSDS Online to store the Material Safety Data Sheets related to the chemicals that it stores and uses within its premises. These range from chemicals used for cleaning to chemicals used within science classrooms.
MSDS Chemical Management System
Safety Committee
The UDASD has a safety committee that is responsible for oversight of safety activities within the UDASD. The safety committee meets monthly. The members of the safety committee undergo an annual training course to assist them in the performance of their functions.
Members of the Safety Committee are:
Brent E. Bell, Administration (Chair)
Amie Savidge, Administration
Heidi Zerby, Elementary School
Michel Grow, Elementary School
Kerry Peck, Middle School
Elizabeth Summers, Middle School
Diana Strohecker, Middle School
George Skelton, Buildings and Grounds
Kenny Wert, Buildings and Grounds
Todd Ayers, High School
Price Buffington, School Board
Act 44 Notifications
Act 44 is a new law that requires all schools to notify parents/guardians of weapons incidents that take place at their student’s schools, on school campuses with more than one school and school transportation. Employees will receive notifications for incidents that occur at the schools or campuses where they work. Such notifications will be provided within 24 hours of learning of these incidents.
Because Upper Dauphin Area School District includes a campus with more than one school, parents/guardians will receive these notifications for weapon incidents that occur only in the campus their student attends.
Notifications will be sent via email using our Student Information System. If you need to update your contact information, please contact us.
Due to state and federal confidentiality laws, these weapons incident notifications will not disclose personally identifiable student information. Instead, they will provide basic information regarding the date and location of a reported weapon incident.
Parents/guardians can take the opportunity to talk with their students regarding the school policies that prohibit the bringing, possessing and use of weapons in school, on school transportation or school grounds. There are serious disciplinary consequences for weapon offenses. Everyone can do their part to keep students safe at school, and parents/guardians can help by reinforcing the longstanding school rules that prohibit students from having weapons at school.
If you have any questions regarding the Act 44 requirements, please contact Dr. Jared Shade at 717-362-8134 or shadej@udasd.org.
