In addition to multiple steps to increase school safety, the Laboratory Schools are implementing new security measures for volunteers who will be working alone with students, will have access to the building or will be touching students when interacting with them.
Volunteers must complete a background check with the Raptor technology system and mandated reporter training, approved by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. Additionally, volunteers must review a policy which describes how adults should act with students on campus.
Betsy Noel, Lab’s director of equal opportunity services and Title IX coordinator, is facilitating the volunteer training. She is pleased to finally have the infrastructure to improve student safety.
“We’re starting here and we’re going to work our way up to get our systems to be more robust than they are presently,” Ms. Noel said. “We’re glad to be taking this additional step to keep students safe.”
Like any new procedure, Ms. Noel said there are always a few issues to smooth out along the way.
“It’s a pilot year, which is part of why it’s administratively, right now, very difficult,” Ms. Noel said. “We’re trying to work out all the little hitches.”
However, the results of these new measures will help inform adults and students about appropriate boundaries.
“I always want everyone to be able to recognize child abuse and neglect,” Ms. Noel said. “I think everyone should know more about it.”
