Safety Awareness at Rush Strong School Begins at Young Age

Staff Photo by Elizabeth Lane

Rush Strong Elementary School brought together their Kindergarten classes for a morning of safety awareness and instruction with SRO officer Moose Soloman. Rush Strong’s kindergarten teachers partnered with personnel to give the schools newest arrivals important tips about their new surroundings.

SRO officer Soloman gathered with the 46 kindergartener’s along with eight grade volunteers to discuss what the children should do should they find themselves in unsafe or emergency situations. He covered a variety of topics from home safety to his own job within the school. Soloman explained to students that he was there for not only their protection but also their personal wellbeing if they are just having a bad day.

Staff Photo by Elizabeth Lane

The D.A.R.E. program was also introduced to students who took their first step into the program by participating in fingerprinting for personal identification kits with the help of eight grade mentors. The mentors explained that they “loved helping out the smaller kids and enjoyed assisting them with school activities throughout the year”. The kits include fingerprints, a personal photo of the child, and their information to be used by parents and law enforcement should the child ever go missing.

School leaders and personnel hope that programs like these bring awareness to kindergartners about their new environment and their own personal safety. Starting awareness early will allow students to be better prepared as they go on later in life and within their school career.

Staff Photo by Elizabeth Lane