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Date: 7/19/2022
MONSON – The Monson School Committee met to discuss a variety of agenda items including a cell phone lock-up initiative and adding another security officer to schools at their July 13 meeting.
Superintendent Cheryl A. Clarke started the meeting by giving an update on how they are preparing for the upcoming school year. She said that all buildings are being cleaned, two new additional preschool classrooms are being set up, new spaces are being set up at Granite Valley, the library is being reconfigured at both Monson High School and Quarry Hill School and a former shop classroom is being turned into a science lab.
“We’re gonna be ready to go. Everything’s already looking really great,” said Clarke.
The meeting then shifted to discuss cell phone pouches.
Clarke and Principal of Monson High School Matthew Sullivan recently met with representatives from the company Yondr to discuss implementing a cell phone lock-up initiative beginning this fall.
Similar initiatives have taken place at Chicopee High School, and Springfield Central High School is in talks to purchase the cell phone pouches as well.
Yondr is the company that makes the pouches, which all high school students would be required to place their cell phones in at the beginning of each school day.
The pouches then lock, and students are unable to take their phones out until the end of the day, unless due to emergency or medical needs.
“They are really a great company. They’re very supportive. We’re in the planning process now and they do trainings with teachers, they have information to send home to parents and staff…,” said Clarke.
Teachers would also put their phones in the pouches, but theirs would not lock.
According to Clarke, staff at the high school are excited about the prospect of bringing this to Monson.
This initiative would not be implemented until the start of the second quarter, as Clarke said they don’t want to rush and they want to have enough time to give more information and receive community feedback.
One School Committee member voiced her concern about having access to phones during emergencies. Clarke said that, in the rare case of an extreme emergency, the pouches can be broken open.
“I think the trade-off of kids being engaged and higher academic performance is certainly worth looking at this. We would really like to pursue this,” said Clarke.
The cost of a cell phone pouch would be $22 per student or about $8,000 in total. These costs would be covered by funding from School Choice and other grants Monson has received.
Clarke said that she will keep the School Committee posted on further information and how this roll-out would happen.
The meeting then moved into discussing a security update. According to Clarke, the town wants to conduct security assessments of town buildings and the schools. They are looking to hire an outside firm to complete these audits.
Clarke said that she is unsure if this audit needs to be done on the schools, as they have several safety measures in place.
“I do feel, and the police chief concurred last night, that we have a lot of safety measures in place, and he said we’re way ahead of other districts and we’ve come so far over the last several years,” she said.
One of her main concerns, which the School Committee agreed with, was that if an audit is done and they are told they need to buy more security cameras or expensive equipment, they will then need to find funding to do so.
Clarke also noted that the district tries to add safety features to each school every summer. She said that this summer they are labeling all the windows with numbers, updating emergency exit maps and investigating the cost of purchasing door blockers.
The idea of undergoing this security audit is still in the beginning stages and Clarke said that she will keep the committee updated.
Clarke also said that the district is looking to add another security officer to the Monson schools’ staff. The district currently has only one resource officer.
This would be an individual who is a retired police officer that left the force in good standing, is a Monson resident and would only work during the school year.
She said that this would be a way to add more security and have another set of eyes and ears alert to keep students and staff safe. She asked for the committee’s approval to draft a job description and take next steps. The committee approved moving forward.
According to Clarke, they already have a person in mind for this position. She said they were recommended by the police chief and they have worked with the current resource officer previously. She will continue to keep the committee and the public updated on this.
Those interested in viewing the Monson School Committee meeting in its entirety are encouraged to visit M-PACT page.