ECA Families, 

Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee. We know that these incidents may cause anxiety and panic with some of our own families. We will be reviewing the incident in Tennessee as more details are released so that we can continue to provide a safer atmosphere at Emmanuel for our students, teachers and staff. 

At our latest Professional Development day on March 17, our staff and teachers participated in an active workshop and a “functional exercise” in which our participants physically worked through scenarios provided by the Clark County Emergency Management Team. Every school year, we are required to perform safety drills with our students including “lockdown drills”. These drills are designed to prepare us to act quickly and effectively develop countermeasures and safety procedures. 

Please understand that while we are open to answering questions, we must be careful about our responses as they relate to our safety procedures/protocols in the event of an emergency. Evidence in recent events has shown that perpetrators have used intel to gain advantage in the last couple of years.

So, to that end, we want you to know that we have a plan that is reviewed every June and submitted to the Department of Homeland Security for approval. 

We are continually working to improve safety measures at our building, whether inside or outside, and continue to look for ways to train and prepare our staff. We are extremely thankful for the Clark County Emergency Management Team, the Springfield Police and the Clark County Sheriff’s Department who have been great resources on how to create the safest school environment that we can. 

We appreciate and covet your prayers for safety for our school and our ECA community. 

Chris Lundquist- Safety Chair
Dan Moore - Building Principal
John Essig - Superintendent