Safety & Security

School Resource Officers

Cassandra Thompson

School Office: (508) 228-7280 Ext. 1232
Police Department: (508) 228-1212
Emergency: 911

What is the function of an SRO?

The following information is borrowed from Raptor Technologies.

Security Presence

Their presence in uniform on campus provides a visual cue of security and authority. A School Resource Officer’s focus is on the school’s immediate needs and the relationships they can build with students.

Relationship Builders

Many at-risk youth have negative interactions with law enforcement on the street. However, in a school setting, the SRO’s role is to get to know the students and build trust so they can intervene early when behavior fits a concerning pattern.

Mediating Mentors

SROs bring a unique perspective to conversations with students who are headed down a path that can lead to criminal activity and the justice system. Knowing how to frame critical conversations with hands-on experience can help when staff need another voice of authority to chime in.

Crisis Experts

As law enforcement officers, SROs have unique training that make them effective partners to rely on during a crisis. They can physically step in to stop an active threat on campus or reassuringly walk staff through an incident.

Teaching Safety First

Raptor for School Safety

What is Raptor?

Raptor Visitor Management minimizes the liabilities of having unsafe individuals—whether they’re a registered sex offender, a previously-banned volunteer, or an unauthorized guardian—into our buildings. The system automatically creates a record of everyone who is or has been in each building across your district and helps ensure staff release students to the proper guardians.

Over 35,000 K-12 schools trust Raptor to screen and track their campus visitors, contractors, and volunteers.

Visitor Management

Visitors to NPS check in at one of the front offices, where they are required to provide a Photo ID. Raptor allows NPS to screen visitors against registered sex offender databases and custom databases (for example, for individuals with restraining orders).

Emergency Management & Reunification

Raptor's emergency management system allows staff to account for their students, themselves, and even visitors in the event of an emergency.

How does it work?

Modern, configurable technology screens each visitor’s information against registered sex offender registries and custom databases, alerting schools if they are a potential threat and automatically creating robust visitor records. Raptor syncs with Student Information Systems (SIS) to pull student, staff, and guardian data, helping ensure school staff are well-positioned to release students to the appropriate guardians, as well as track student tardies and early dismissals.

Fire Drills & Lockdown Simulations

All of Nantucket Public Schools conduct fire drills multiple times a year and lockdown trainings at least one a year to prepare students and staff in the event of an emergency.

Throughout the year, we practice safety drills together, including fire drills, lock-down drills, hold, and evacuation. Before we practice as a school, teachers take time to review the routines with students so they know what to expect.

We do our best to keep these practices calm and reassuring, while also making sure students feel prepared in case of a real emergency. If students have any questions or need to discuss further, our teachers, counselors, and school administration are always available to support them.

Local public safety officials collaborate with Nantucket Public Schools on these drills.

For more information about how your child's school approaches safety drills, please visit their Student & Family Handbook on their school website.

Parent Role in an Emergency

Stay Home

Parents are advised not to come to the school. You may endanger yourself or your child by arriving at the school. School district personnel and First Responders will be working hard to control the situation and protect your children. Law Enforcement will be focused on the critical task of keeping your child safe.

Stay informed

School district personnel will provide information as soon as possible. Some situations take time to verify accurate information. School district personnel will communicate throughout the situation in several ways: District communication system, ParentSquare, District social media, or local news media. Please do not call the school as you likely will not get an answer, or you could be pulling staff away from the emergency.

Be Ready

In case a reunification is necessary, you’ll be informed when and where to pick up your child. Please bring a photo ID and be patient. The process takes time, and it’s essential to stay calm. The reunification process protects the safety of students and provides for an accountable exchange of custody from the school to a recognized parent or guardian.

Hold off on calling or texting your student

Parents will be notified with updates on the situation promptly. When it’s safe to do so, students will be allowed to text their parent(s) during a crisis, if applicable. You should NOT call or text a student’s cell phone during a problem unless you’ve heard from them first and know it’s safe to text back. You may be placing your child at risk. Students are trained to stay out of sight and quiet during a Lockdown. A phone ringing or vibrating could alert an intruder to the student’s location.

Make a Plan

Talk to your children about school safety. Review how you will communicate, where you will go, and safety steps during an emergency as a family.

More About School Resource Officers

A certified law enforcement officer is specifically trained to perform three roles: law enforcement officer; law-related counselor; and law-related education teacher. The SRO is a comprehensive resource for their school.

The SRO is a classroom resource for instruction in the law related education, violence diffusion, safety programs, alcohol and drug prevention, crime prevention and other areas.

They serve as a resource to teachers, parents, and students for conferences on an individual basis, dealing with individual problems or questions and serve as a counseling resource in areas which may affect the educational environment but may be of a law-related nature.

The SRO is also a liaison between the police department and helps provide community-oriented policing services for the high school and the surrounding community.

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