Parents rate security at Saugus schools as top-notch

SAUGUS – As their children headed to school Monday morning, Saugus parents praised the district’s “strict” security measures. But despite locked doors and security cameras, some said tragedies like the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday are “unavoidable.””I think this was unpreventable,” said Donna Trumpler, president of the Waybright Elementary School Parent-Teacher Organization. “No matter what we do with security, if someone wants to find a way in, they’re going to find a way in. It sounds like they have the same system as our schools where they buzz you in with a camera.”Trumpler said she and her two sons, a fifth-grader and a second-grader, feel “safe and secure” at the Waybright, noting staff follow safety procedures “to a tee.””The door is locked at 9 a.m. and that’s it,” said Trumpler. “At the Waybright I feel totally safe and so do my kids. I asked my older son how he feels about this happening at our school and he said, ‘I feel safe.’ All the windows are low level and the kids can jump out. There are classrooms with doors in them that they can get out onto school grounds.”Emergency Management Director Paul Penachio is also co-president of the Veterans Elementary School PTO. Penachio said the school is “very strict” when it comes to security measures, but added “you never know what could happen.””They have a security camera and before anybody gets buzzed in they look to see who it is,” said Penachio. “Anybody who walks through the door has to sign in and sign a visitors tag. They’re very good about it. I feel that the children are secure in that way. But you never know what could happen. That school in Connecticut was secure too and he forced his way through one of the doors supposedly. That’s what they’re saying on the news.”One Friday night, several residents gathered on the steps of Town Hall for an impromptu candlelight vigil and, on Sunday, Saugus Schools Superintendent Richard Langlois released a statement calling on the school community to “work together” to support students and staff with “normalcy and reinforcement of our security protocols and readiness.””Each school principal is preparing to help students or staff struggling with anxiety or questions about this tragedy, and how this could happen,” said Langlois. “We take our role as guardians very serious and are committed to that end by having emergency plans in place in all schools.”Langlois also assured parents that officials are taking their “responsibility of making our schools a safe place very serious,” noting he plans to review “all aspects” of the district’s security and emergency plans to ensure “best practices.”Support will also be on hand to for any students “having difficulty” with reaction to the shooting, said Langlois, who urged parents not to hesitate in contacting their principals Monday morning.”We do not intend to discuss the tragedy in our school classrooms and will direct students that are troubled to trained support staff,” said Langlois. “Additionally, if parents need advice about talking with their child, we will provide school personnel with expertise to assist. I ask that you all take care of each other during this difficult time and rally around your family with blessing, comfort, and support.”Trumpler said she handled the tragedy differently with her two sons as she had to explain what happened to her older son but tried to avoid the issue with her younger son.”My little one does not know because I don’t want to scare him,” said Trumpler. “He’s very sensitive and worries a lot. He had already asked me about the theater shooting from the Batman release and he was just petrified for days with that. I’m not going to tell him about this. But my oldest I had to tell because he’s on Xbox live and all his friends talk. Being in fifth grade they talk about that stuff. I had to explain it to him and he was sad and shocked, but I don’t think he can really connect to it because it’s not something he can connect to locally.”