LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — Safety and well-being are the two biggest priorities for Lauderdale County Schools, after recently welcoming the “Handle with Care” program.
Lauderdale County Sheriff Joe Hamilton explained to News 19 what this new program is all about.
“It’s a way for us to notify the school system that this child has been involved in something and make them aware of it,” the sheriff said. “So when that child comes to school the next day and they may not be acting they’re their normal self, or… their homework not finished, or they may be in the same clothes, they will have a heads up of something has happened in that child’s life.”
The program is under the National Children’s Advocacy Center, and Hamilton said often times, deputies are called to domestic, drug and even search warrant situations where children are a witness or sometimes a victim. Hamilton also said this program ensures the care and safety of the child while at school.
“All officers seem to really care about that, and it’s just the way that we can help even after we clear off the call, we can still help that child along the way,” Hamilton said.
It’s a pretty simple system: if a deputy is on a call where a child is involved, that deputy will log into a portal, type the child’s name and school in, and it will then alert the school right away.
News 19 sat down with the Lauderdale County School system’s spokesperson, Whitney Coates, who told us the next step.
“Our counselors do a great job of saying, ‘ok, do I need to go to the home? Do I need to make a home visit? Do I need to check on this student? Do we need to make a phone call?’” she said. “So, having our counselors be ready to do that is something that is technically, probably, not in their job description.”
The program applies to all 17 schools in the Lauderdale County School System, grades K-12.
“It is such a blessing for our communities to know that it’s not taking away from something else, it is truly just a benefit, and that’s really what handle with care is for our students, it’s just a benefit,” Coates said.
Other schools in the area that have this program are Muscle Shoals City Schools and Madison City Schools.
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