By Patricia Farris News Review Publisher–
At the January 19 board meeting of the Sierra Sands Unified School District Board of Education, the board approved a request to Purchase an Entry Gate Camera and Electric Gate Opener for Inyokern Elementary School.
Bryan Auld, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources explained that the school has a chain link fence that creates a safe perimeter for keeping people from accessing campus, noting that the entry gate is not located in an area where it can easily be viewed by office staff.
“Therefore, it must remain unlocked so visitors can access the front office,” he said. “This means that the campus is not completely secured.”
He also noted that an entry gate camera and electric gate opener should be installed to completely secure the campus and ensure the gate remains locked.
“This will allow office staff to view visitors at the gate from a surveillance device in the office,” said Auld. “The electric gate opener will allow office staff to unlock the gate if the visitor is welcome.”
“Anything we can do to secure our facilities and make it safer for our students and staff is always a plus, so thank you,” he said.
According to Auld, the cost of the equipment, labor, and installation will be approximately $18,635. The funding will come from the district Safety Budget.
Board approves MOU with BCBA
Board also approved a memorandum of understanding with Comprehensive Unique Behavioral Services to provide a board-certified behavior analyst for the remainder of the school year.
“For the safety of students and staff and to ensure all receive a free appropriate public education as mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, SSUSD employs a full-time Board-Certified Behavior Analyst,” said Special Education Local Plan Area Executive Director Paul Delbick.
He said BCBAs are healthcare professionals who study the behavior of children and adults and create plans to improve or change problematic behaviors. They perform functional behavioral assessments to determine the function of a child’s behavior such as work avoidance or attention, and create behavior plans based on the individual needs of each student.
“They often work with students with developmental disabilities, brain injuries or emotional control, social or behavioral issues,” he said. “BCBA’s also supervise our registered behavior technicians to ensure all students’ safety and access to their curriculum.”
Delbick said the district’s in-house BCBA resigned on Jan. 3.
“There is a need for Sierra Sands to contract for a full-time BCBA to be used in special education classrooms,” he said. Since this BCBA will not be an employee of Sierra Sands, we will enter into an agreement with Comprehensive Unique Behavioral Services, which will provide a 30-hour-a-week BCBA for the remainder of this school year while safeguarding the interests of the district.”
The cost to the district for these services for the remainder will not exceed $62,000 and will be paid out of the Special Education budget.
