Northeast Florida school districts address safety, following deadly Parkland high school shooting

Jacksonville, FL — Following the Parkland, Florida, high school shooting on Wednesday that claimed 17 lives and injured more than a dozen others, Northeast Florida school districts want parents to know they're making safety a top priority.

DUVAL COUNTY

The Duval County Public School district held a news conference Thursday afternoon to address the shooting and offer their thoughts and prayers to the victims and their families.

During that conference, Interim Superintendent Patricia Willis also wanted to reassure parents, safety is the top priority. She says that their very first meeting of the day on Thursday was to review safety and security policies.  She says there no major areas they identified that needed any changes.

"We want our Duval County families to know that safety is paramount for our school district, with the extensive emergency procedures that our in place. Our staff and our students rehearse those procedures regularly, on regular basis, under the direction of our police department, so that we ensure that procedures and drills are done properly in response to these kinds of threats," says Willis.

Willis went on to say if students, parents, or staff see suspicious or threatening behavior it needs to be brought to the district's or school's attention or even law enforcement, like JSO.

CLAY COUNTY 

In a statement released Thursday by Clay County District Schools, Superintendent Addison Davis says their schools will continue to have a law enforcement presence both in and around the schools.

He says he has also called on all employees to continuously work together and be mindful of their best practices when it comes to school safety. That includes reviewing all emergency plans, drills, and protocols.

Read the complete statement from Davis below:

"Clay County District Schools extends its sincere condolences and prayers to all students, teachers, administrators, school community, families and loved ones affected by the incident at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. No student, teacher or staff member should experience this horrific act within our schools.

As the leader of Clay County Schools, I want to reassure everyone that safety will always be our greatest priority. It is essential that each school and workplace be a safe and respectful environment in which students can learn, teachers can teach, and employees can work together to support our students intellectually, socially, and emotionally. Our leadership will continue to focus on strengthening an environment that is positive and aligned with a violence prevention focus.

Since yesterday’s event, I have reminded all employees to continuously work together and be mindful of best practices linked to school safety. This includes reviewing emergency plans, drills, and protocols throughout all schools. As a district, we will continue to review our procedures and policies in order to provide safeguards to all students and employees at all times.

Today, in keeping with our daily priorities, law enforcement will continue to be in and around our schools. Over the past year, we have been more diligent in our efforts to collaborate with our local law enforcement agencies to ensure best practices for school safety. We will continue to work together and remain Clay Strong."

ST. JOHNS COUNTY 

St. Johns County Schools Superintendent Tim Forson left a voicemail with all families in the district, saying he has been in contact with St. Johns County Sheriff David Shoar to reaffirm their commitment to school safety. He also announced resources online and on-campus to help any students and parents that may be in need.

Read the full voicemail below:

"Good afternoon, this is Tim Forson, superintendent of St. Johns County Schools. Today, our hearts go out to the families impacted by the tragic school shooting in Parkland, Florida. Unfortunately, these events serve as a reminder of why it is so important that we continue to review and evaluate the safety of our schools.

I've been in contact with Sheriff Shoar, together, we are committed to continuing our work to ensure the highest level of safety for our schools. Please know that school safety is an integral part of the daily operations.

We've placed on our school district website, resources that may be useful when talking to your children about this type of event. Our schools are also prepared to assist students that may need support and our school guidance counselors are able to speak with any student or parent in need.

In closing, we ask that you and your children focus on situational awareness. When children or adults are faced with the decision on whether or not to tell law enforcement about something that seems suspicious, it's imperative that we always face think about our safety and the safety of others first. Thank you very much for your continued support of our schools."