Rabun County Superintendent reassures school safety

RABUN COUNTY —  Less than a week has passed since the nation was rocked by a massacre that occurred at Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Since then, Hall, Habersham and White counties have encountered multiple alleged incidents where students made violent threats claiming to “shoot up” the schools.

While investigations run rampant in surrounding counties, Rabun County remains neutral and continues to take preventative measures — making sure no kid has to endure the pain and loss associated with an active shooting.

Rabun County Superintendent Melissa Williams told WRBN/WGHC that plans are in place and are ready to take effect, should an incident arise.

“We have a code red drill that is regularly practiced unannounced. We hold our plans very close to us because we don’t want them known to someone who may have ill-intent and could use them against us,” Williams said.  

She added a heightened level of concentration is placed upon teachers and staff to ensure they are aware of what actions to take if they should ever encounter an active shooting situation.

“Their best defense is to think and react calmly in a manner that protects our students and keep them safe,” she said.

Williams added in conjunction with a plan, safety measures are also in place on school grounds such as having school resource officers (SRO), camera surveillance systems and special door locks.

“Certainly, we are trying to be proactive and do everything we can to maintain that level of safety for our faculty, staff and our students without divulging all of our plans,” Williams said. “Because that is what we feel is in the best interest of our students.”

She said although the students have expressed a level of sympathy for the tragic shooting in Florida that left 17 dead, they are still very focused on academics and extracurricular activities and trust in the faculty to keep them safe.

“Our students are very concerned and sympathetic and want to prayerfully cover the students who were involved in any type of traumatic event, but at the same time they trust that we are doing everything to protect them,” Williams disclosed.

“They’re focused on staying in school and attending classes. There’s nothing we can do to make sure it never happens, but praying that if something does happen, that we’ve put enough thought and processes in place to put us in the best position that we could possibly be in.”