Superintendent Nichols Provides Security Update at Latest Sag Harbor Board of Education Meeting

Sag Harbor Superintendent of Schools Jeff Nichols provided an update on the district’s security plans and protocols at the most recent Board of Education meeting on Monday night, November 6, sharing that the district was investing more in security, and outlining some of the changes and improvements that have already been made and are planned for the future.

He prefaced his report by saying that he was limited in the amount of detail he could share with the public, because sharing too much information publicly could compromise the district from a security perspective, but he said he wanted to provide a “broad sense” of changes that have been implemented.

The district hired a security consultant last year to do an audit of the security protocols in the district and make recommendations. That work was completed in the late spring, Nichols said, and guided the district in terms of creating a staffing plan and hiring additional personnel.

The district now has seven full-time security personnel on staff, nearly doubling what it had last year, with three full-timers on staff.

“The increase in staff has enabled us to do a better job of supervising all three buildings,” Nichols said.

Protocols for gaining entrance to the buildings have been updated, and Nichols said that the district is committed to providing more security at co-curricular events, such as interscholastic sports contests both on campus and at Mashashimuet Park. He said doing a better job in that area will likely necessitate hiring additional staff.

Nichols said the district was also trying to ramp up the security presence at the schools when they are being used in the evening, which could also necessitate hiring more staff.

“We will have to hire additional staff if we want one security guard at each facility where community members are present,” he said. “I think discussions will be forthcoming sooner rather than later with regard to community groups who use the facility and do we want to pass on that cost or provide the service as part of our operating budget.”

Nichols shared that district officials have also met several times with Sag Harbor Village Police to focus on protocols and procedures for safety drills, such as lockdown drills, and said that the police have met with administrators regarding bomb threats. While the district has not had a bomb threat against it this year, several nearby districts such as Southampton and Amagansett have experienced that, and he said that the district is ready if and when a threat is issued.

Nichols said the district has also discussed the possibility of increased police presence at daily drop off and dismissal, and added that considering updates to security infrastructure and technology are also on the table.

“We’re considering what types of enhancements would make sense in terms of how we can better protect the school,” he said.