District security to provide direct training for teachers

The Sayville School District announced that as of Feb. 1, Covert Investigations & Security will take over the leadership and management of the district’s security program.

On Jan. 7, the district held a community meeting where a presentation was given by multiple department heads to map out the current security measures taken by the district.

After the presentation, parents were divided into small groups to have discussions led and documented by a member of the district staff about their thoughts on further security measures.

The meeting was developed as a response to intense discussions in the community about safety measures, particularly armed guards at school building perimeters, following violent threats made towards the school district.

Covert Investigations & Security will be providing the Sayville Union Free School District with a fully trained and experienced head of security, as well as a team of law enforcement professionals available 24/7 for support.

At a Board of Education meeting on Jan. 23, Covert detailed the services they would provide for Sayville Schools, including daily safety assessments, annual security audits, mandatory security guard training, direct training for teachers and staff, incident report analysis, and coordination with local law enforcement for follow-up investigations.

In a letter to parents in the district, superintendent Dr. Marc Ferris said, “We strongly believe that a team-based approach—guided by experts in P-12 security and safety management working in collaboration with our current security team—will significantly enhance the quality of our safety and security efforts, which will benefit all members of our learning community.”

The duties of Covert were outlined in the letter as follows:

Covert will support our head of security and our district/building administrators with a full team of experienced law enforcement professionals, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for on-site consultation and emergency management expertise.

In addition to daily safety assessments, Covert’s team will conduct an intensive three to four-week security audit of our district annually. These findings will lead to actionable recommendations regarding district wide safety and security measures, which will complement the audits already completed by the 5th Precinct and Homeland Security.

Covert will provide direct annual training to all of district security guards and mandatory eight-hour training for new guards, covering topics such as Active Shooter Training, Stop the Bleed, CPR/First Aid/AED training, and P-12-specific school-based security training.

Covert will provide direct training for teachers and staff during faculty meetings and conference days as needed or as requested by the district.

Covert will analyze district wide security and incident reports, looking for trends and redeploying personnel as it pertains to needs dictated by the data.

Covert will conduct follow-up investigations into criminal incidents and coordinate with local law enforcement as needed.

Covert team members will assist in the oversight and coordination of our RAVE app, Go Guardian, and will monitor and respond to our anonymous tip line 24/7.

“Safety and security have always been a top priority in the Sayville School District,” said Ferris. “We strongly believe that a team-based approach—guided by experts in K-12 security and safety management working in collaboration with our current security team—will significantly enhance the quality of our safety and security efforts, ultimately benefiting all members of our learning community.”

Covert has named Michael Elderbaum the district’s new head of security.

Elderbaum, a longtime resident of Sayville, has over 30 years of experience with the New York City Police Department, most recently as a detective squad sergeant supervisor. He will be taking over for Wayne Simone, who served as head of security for two and a half years and worked in the district’s security program since 2018.

Ferris emphasized that the new direction being taken is a reflection of the increased and complex security and safety challenges in the world and not a reflection of Simone’s leadership of the district’s security team over the past several years.