Message from Superintendent Davis

Good Evening CCSD Families,

It is with a heavy heart that I send this message this evening following the horrific and tragic events at Apalachee High School in Barrow County today.  As the Superintendent of the Cherokee County School District, there is nothing that I think more about each day than the safety and security of our students and our staff, and I am heartbroken to think about the devastation experienced by the Barrow community and shared by our entire state of Georgia.

I also want to take this moment to assure you that our vigilance around safety and security practices remains a top priority each and every day.  We daily monitor and manage visitors to the building and routinely check for locked exterior and interior doors.  Our School Police Officers work in coordination with our Principals to ensure there is a daily safety plan and proactive monitoring of our protocols.  Thanks to the continued investments made by our School Board, we have installed layers of security measures including a visitor camera entrance system, security foyers, security film on front doors and windows, and each of our employees wears a crisis response badge that can instantly activate a school lock-down or emergency response if ever needed.  In addition, I want to remind you of our Vector Alert anonymous reporting system.  If anyone has a concern about a school safety issue it should be reported by text to 470-315-9171.

Today, I have met with our School Police Chief Buster Cushing who has already coordinated with the law enforcement agencies of our local municipalities, Sheriff’s Office, and State Patrol.  As we head into the normal operations of our school day tomorrow, you can expect to see additional law enforcement present and our administrators and staff continuing to uphold our safety and security practices.  We will also have our school guidance counselors available for any young person or family that would like to speak with someone.

While I am saddened by the events that took place in Barrow County today, I remain extremely confident in the safety and security of our schools.  I am grateful for our extraordinary team of School Police Officers, our focused and professional school administrators, our talented and skilled teachers, and our entire community of students who daily work together to make learning our focus and safety our commitment.

Mary Elizabeth Davis, PhD
Superintendent of Schools