Tippy Valley Upgrades Visitor Security, Hires Baseball Coach
September 12, 2017 at 3:59 p.m.
AKRON – Tippecanoe Valley schools will now have an extra layer of safety protection with the installation of their Raptor School Visitor System.
School board members heard a presentation at its meeting Monday on the system that was implemented Sept. 5 in each of the buildings in the corporation.
Each of the buildings had cameras and door entry systems. The newly implemented system will be an addition.
In 2015, Superintendent Brett Boggs asked the safety committee to research different systems that are used to audit who enters and has access to students during school hours. According to Scott Backus, Tippecanoe Valley Middle School principal, and Jon Hutton, school safety specialist, they investigated five different systems and chose the Raptor System. Currently, neighboring school corporations in Plymouth, Wa-Nee and Warsaw use the Raptor system.
Those entering the schools will have to provide identification, such as a driver’s license, that school personnel will use to check against the sex offender registry and an internal registry kept by the corporation.
The initial cost, which included software and hardware with training, was $8,196. Approximately half of the fee was covered through a Homeland Security grant. In order to save money, the installation was completed by Valley’s technology department. Additionally, there will be an annual fee of $2,200 to maintain the system.
Backus said the Raptor System will only be in use during school hours and will not be used for after-hours entry into buildings. Those who are simply dropping off items in the office will not have to be screened.
Hutton said a letter explaining the system will be sent home with all students, and a video on usage will be available on the corporation’s website.
In other matters, Greg Prater was hired as the boys baseball head coach at Tippecanoe Valley High School. When asked during the meeting if he’d like to say anything, he replied, “I love the opportunity I’ve been given here. I intend to do my absolute best. We have a great group of young men that I’m going to be able to coach. I’m looking forward to it and I thank you guys very much.”
The Akron Elementary building project is nearly on schedule. According to Derek Anderson, Skillman project manager, they have completed the hard surface and installed a basketball hoop. He indicated that the playground area has been prepared for the installation of playground equipment that could be in place in four to six weeks. Once the equipment is set, a layer of rubber mulch will be laid down. Anderson said they will be completing the work on the inside of the gymnasium in November.
The name of the ball field at the high school is expected to be approved at the October board meeting. Board President Todd Hoffman said they received 183 suggestions for a name with many of them indicating Death Valley. Four suggested names shown at Monday’s meeting included Death Valley Memorial Field; Smith-Bibler Memorial Field-Home of Death Valley Football; Smith-Bibler at Death Valley Field; and Smith-Bibler Field at Death Valley.
A photo was taken before the meeting under the bald cypress tree at Mentone Elementary. A plaque was recently erected detailing the history of the tree. The tree is unusual in that bald cypress trees generally only grow in southern climates and are not generally found in Indiana. Dale Kelley, then-principal of Mentone High School, reportedly brought the tree from Florida and it was planted by then-agriculture teacher Pat Harrison. The plaque, placed by the Mentone High School Alumni Association, chronicles the history of the tree, which is believed to be one of very few to exist this far north.
The four Valley school principals presented their school improvement plans to the board members. Since the ISTEP+ scores are still embargoed to the public, they were not permitted to disclose them. They all spoke to methods of assessing student levels in reading and math and using the data to provide interventions for struggling students.
The same test administered this year will be given again in the spring. A replacement test will be given in the 2018-19 school year.
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AKRON – Tippecanoe Valley schools will now have an extra layer of safety protection with the installation of their Raptor School Visitor System.
School board members heard a presentation at its meeting Monday on the system that was implemented Sept. 5 in each of the buildings in the corporation.
Each of the buildings had cameras and door entry systems. The newly implemented system will be an addition.
In 2015, Superintendent Brett Boggs asked the safety committee to research different systems that are used to audit who enters and has access to students during school hours. According to Scott Backus, Tippecanoe Valley Middle School principal, and Jon Hutton, school safety specialist, they investigated five different systems and chose the Raptor System. Currently, neighboring school corporations in Plymouth, Wa-Nee and Warsaw use the Raptor system.
Those entering the schools will have to provide identification, such as a driver’s license, that school personnel will use to check against the sex offender registry and an internal registry kept by the corporation.
The initial cost, which included software and hardware with training, was $8,196. Approximately half of the fee was covered through a Homeland Security grant. In order to save money, the installation was completed by Valley’s technology department. Additionally, there will be an annual fee of $2,200 to maintain the system.
Backus said the Raptor System will only be in use during school hours and will not be used for after-hours entry into buildings. Those who are simply dropping off items in the office will not have to be screened.
Hutton said a letter explaining the system will be sent home with all students, and a video on usage will be available on the corporation’s website.
In other matters, Greg Prater was hired as the boys baseball head coach at Tippecanoe Valley High School. When asked during the meeting if he’d like to say anything, he replied, “I love the opportunity I’ve been given here. I intend to do my absolute best. We have a great group of young men that I’m going to be able to coach. I’m looking forward to it and I thank you guys very much.”
The Akron Elementary building project is nearly on schedule. According to Derek Anderson, Skillman project manager, they have completed the hard surface and installed a basketball hoop. He indicated that the playground area has been prepared for the installation of playground equipment that could be in place in four to six weeks. Once the equipment is set, a layer of rubber mulch will be laid down. Anderson said they will be completing the work on the inside of the gymnasium in November.
The name of the ball field at the high school is expected to be approved at the October board meeting. Board President Todd Hoffman said they received 183 suggestions for a name with many of them indicating Death Valley. Four suggested names shown at Monday’s meeting included Death Valley Memorial Field; Smith-Bibler Memorial Field-Home of Death Valley Football; Smith-Bibler at Death Valley Field; and Smith-Bibler Field at Death Valley.
A photo was taken before the meeting under the bald cypress tree at Mentone Elementary. A plaque was recently erected detailing the history of the tree. The tree is unusual in that bald cypress trees generally only grow in southern climates and are not generally found in Indiana. Dale Kelley, then-principal of Mentone High School, reportedly brought the tree from Florida and it was planted by then-agriculture teacher Pat Harrison. The plaque, placed by the Mentone High School Alumni Association, chronicles the history of the tree, which is believed to be one of very few to exist this far north.
The four Valley school principals presented their school improvement plans to the board members. Since the ISTEP+ scores are still embargoed to the public, they were not permitted to disclose them. They all spoke to methods of assessing student levels in reading and math and using the data to provide interventions for struggling students.
The same test administered this year will be given again in the spring. A replacement test will be given in the 2018-19 school year.