Student safety is taken seriously at USD 428. That’s why when you drive by Great Bend High School you will see recently added large yellow and black signs above all of the entrances.
“These signs label the doors for emergency responders and also delivery people coming into the building,” explained Daryl Moore, assistant principal. “The signs are large enough to see from the street and they label each of the outside doors.”
Moore said that visitors are still asked to use the front doors on Morton Street that are labeled E1. They should always report to the office so that staff knows who is in the building and why. Only that main door is unlocked and it has cameras mounted for added safety.
“With the incidents that are happening in schools today, we appreciate help notifying the office of who comes into the building,” he said, adding it may seem inconvenient, but the safety of students must come first.  “We hope that we do not have to call EMTs, firemen or law enforcement to the building in an emergency situation, but if we do we want to be prepared and make entry into the building as fast and efficient as possible,” Moore said. With the entryways now clearly marked, the emergency personnel will be able to go through the door closest to the problem and immediately offer assistance.  Moore noted since all of the doors are locked except the main front one, staff will have to meet emergency personnel at the specified door, if possible. If not possible, the emergency personnel will have to break down the door.   “We want to do everything possible to make the job for emergency personnel as easy and efficient as possible and provide the best care avail- able for our students and staff,” he said. “We have already heard positive comments from law enforcement and vendors about how they appreciate the signage,” he said. Each door is assigned a letter for the direction it faces – N, S, E or W. They are numbered according to how many doors are on each side. Number one is on the door farthest left side of the building as you face it.  For example, E1 is the front door on the east side of the building and farthest to the left as you face it.   “We hope you find this information reassuring and easy to understand,” he said. “We thank everyone for their support of Great Bend High School and our students.”