An Elementary School Principal's Wise Letter to Parents in Response to the Sandy Hook Tragedy

Lessons in leadership...here is the thoughtful letter (below) from our elementary school principal in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy. The letter offers an informed, compassionate, firm (and, in my opinion, wise) response to the crisis.

Dear Parents,

I have struggled with how to respond to the Connecticut tragedy personally and with you as members of our community. I admit to often choosing the less painful mindset of  "it could not happen here" versus the reality of today's world. Having learned more about the Newtown incident, the similarities of our communities are too great to hold on to my naive thinking.

That being said, the Sandy Hook Elementary School had security measures in place much like we do here. Their staff, like ours, was trained on locking all doors and huddling students away from windows. Code messages were known for communication purposes and doors were secure. These preventative practices certainly mitigated the severity of the tragedy but did not prevent it. The sad reality is, no amount of security and planning can prevent a disturbed individual from inflicting harm if the desire is there.

To me, the potential for a greater tragedy lies ahead depending upon how we as adults respond to this and other similar events. Allowing ourselves to develop an outlook of fear and projecting this upon our children robs us all of a quality life. A fear-based mindset extends this tragedy far beyond the small town where it occurred and can negatively impact our local and national community for generations. Neither children or adults thrive in this kind of environment. Our physical and mental health, our ability to learn and think clearly and our ability to lead the most active and productive lives are all significantly diminished when fear becomes a driving force in our thoughts.

Therefore, as your school's principal, I will not be requesting funds for an armed guard at every door nor will I be lobbying our legislature for staff members to carry fire arms. I will instead take the following actions:

1. Review our existing safety precautions and explore means to improve them.
2. Insist parents entering the school in the morning drop off their children and say their goodbyes at the red front entry doors.
3. Be more vigilant in communicating with parents any concerns my staff or I may have regarding the mental health of their children.

As you allow your children to come back to our school tomorrow morning, please knowthat our staff will be sensitive to students in need of comfort. Also know that for all our students, we will work to convey a sense of safety and security in which everyone can thrive.

[Sincerely,

Principal]