Orange is fortunate to have two School Resource Officers (SRO). Officer Todd Bennett from the Pepper Pike Police is based at the high school. Officer Scott Bennett from the Moreland Hills Police is based at the elementary and middle schools. However, both SRO serve all our buildings and the entire campus. They are on campus any day school is in session. There are additional Moreland Hills and Pepper Pike Police presence on campus throughout the day and response times are quick. We also have police support from Orange Village, Woodmere and Hunting Valley.

The Moreland Hills Police Department coordinates a schedule with the schools for an increased police presence to support us several hours a day at the elementary and middle schools. These officers will support administrators and our School Resource Officers by interacting with students, engaging in the learning process, and collaborating with our staff.

These proactive measures along with ongoing regular visits by our safety forces and the presence of our School Resource Officers helps provide students and staff with a safe learning environment. 

The teachers’ association, the school safety committee and local police forces are strongly against arming staff. Training for armed officers is intense and extensive and well beyond what a staff member with a permit would receive. Arming our staff would be setting them up for failure and be putting them in dangerous situations.

Fire and EMS response provided by Pepper Pike, Chagrin Falls and Orange Fire Departments to the Orange School campus average between 5 to 6 minutes from the time of call to 911.

We have heard the concerns regarding the procedure of entering the buildings, and we will be retraining staff to tighten up the way people are allowed into buildings.

Thank you for sharing this situation. Parents and student drivers will be reminded of this issue. The police will be increasing patrols at dismissal time.

We are not looking to reinventing the wheel. We are studying best practices from school districts across the state.

Please see the attached presentation of some of the things that we are currently doing to keep our staff and students safe.  

There are no plans to have metal detectors installed in the schools at this time.

We do use K-9 officers periodically throughout the school year to check the buildings.

The District has had a long standing commitment to the social and emotional health of students in the Orange Schools. To that end, we have in place robust mental health programming that includes School Psychologists, Guidance Counselors and Social Workers in every building.

Our mental health teams work in collaboration with staff and administrators to identify students who may benefit from additional supports and utilize the following approaches to support the social and emotional health of students: individual, group, and family interventions, evidence-based mental health practices, threat assessments, trauma-informed care, parent education, guidance and support, intensive case management, and linkages to services.

This is a safety measure. There are no sidewalks or bike paths leading up to the Orange Schools Campus. For the safety of the students, we do not want them riding their bikes to school.

Orange Schools has placed Stop the Bleed buckets in classrooms and common areas as part of their emergency preparedness plan. Each bucket contains trauma-care supplies—such as tourniquets, bandages, gloves, and instructions—designed to help staff or bystanders quickly control severe bleeding until professional medical responders arrive. This initiative enhances school safety by ensuring life-saving tools are immediately accessible during accidents or emergencies.

The Pepper Pike Fire Department worked with the Orange Schools to secure equipment and training for this program.

We are now required by law to perform this drill at all the schools. It will be our best practice to do these on a regular basis. 

We will enforce the dress code as outlined in the student handbook. We will not be introducing school uniforms.

The District is currently looking into different student ID programs.

The Safety Committee will continue to review these and other safety items for classrooms and other areas of the buildings.

The Orange Schools do not currently have metal detector wands. Local police have access to these items.

Students are not on the District text messaging system. Parents are able to opt in to the District text messaging system by texting YES to 68453.

The Safe School Helpline is shared with students throughout the year.

The Safe School Helpline can be accessed via three methods:

• By telephone at 1-800-4-1-VOICE ext. 359 (1-800-418-6423 ext. 359)
• Online at www.safeschoolhelpline.com
• By texting 66746 and typing "TIPS" as the message.

All messages will be communicated with school officials. All information will remain anonymous to encourage the reporting of all safety concerns.

This possibility is currently being discussed.

School staff receive some training such as CPR and AED as well as mandatory training through Public School Works. We also provide a registered nurse at each school. 

Yes. First aid training is taught at the high school along with AED training.

Yes. We are always reviewing it as things evolve and improve. Keep in mind we can only filter our own system and network. We cannot filter anything outside of our control.

We are only able to mandate staff ALICE training. We did offer a voluntary ALICE presentation for parents through our PTA.

We will be alerting parents through our ParentSquare notification system and other forms of communication. We strongly encourage you to keep your cell phone and email contact information current.

In the event of a crisis, do NOT come to the Orange Schools Campus. Safety forces need to do their jobs in securing the situation. People coming to the campus pulls manpower away. Chagrin Blvd would most likely be shut down. We will get information out to you as quickly as possible, but we need it to be the right information.