The nation was still reeling from a mass shooting in Buffalo, N.Y., when another 18-year-old entered an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday and killed 19 children and two teachers.

The school massacre on the heels of the Buffalo carnage spurred leaders of school districts in McKean County to reaffirm their safety protocols and call for vigilance in their communities.

“One thing we try to impress on our students, especially with the age of social media, is that if they see something, they should say something,” Bradford Area School District Superintendent Katy Pude said. “So often these tragedies could have been avoided if someone would have reported posts they saw on the internet or comments that were made.”

Kane Area School District Interim Superintendent Ann Kearney said students there have a similar motto to the see something, say something rule of Bradford.

“Students learn about the Safe2Say program that allows anyone to anonymously report suspected activities and/or bullying,” Kearney said. “The system is used on a regular basis and the reports from that program are thoroughly investigated.”

In comparison with the most recent incident, where an 18-year-old gained entry to an elementary school and opened fire in a classroom full of students, local superintendents also discussed the improbability of a similar occurrence here due to entry safety precautions.

“Each school building has a single point of entry (students/visitors must enter the building through the same set of doors) during the school day,” explained BASD Assistant Superintendent Sam Johnson. “Entry will only be granted if necessary and only upon proper credentialing. The employees and Board of Directors take the security of our buildings very seriously. We do have many multiple layers of security beyond just the point of entry, but we do not discuss them publicly in order to better protect our students and employees.”

Besides conducting recent lockdown drill procedures for all of their buildings in the Kane school district, Kearney said security entrance areas were installed just a couple of years ago.

“Once the school day begins, doors are electronically locked and no one can enter the building without going through the RAPTOR system at each main entrance,” Kearney said. “Each entrance is double-doored with a safety vestibule.”

She said secretaries are trained in the system and know how to monitor incoming visitors. Photocopies of the visitors IDs are taken and kept for records.

“Visitors must have a ‘purpose’ to be ‘buzzed in,’” Kearney said. “Visitors are then given a photo badge and must return the badge when they leave the building. All others MUST have a FOB given to them as district employees. This gives them the ability to enter the building by specific entrances. All entrances have interior and exterior cameras.”

Numerous cameras have been installed inside and outside all the buildings. Protective screens have been installed on all interior classroom doors within the last few years and special locks were put on all interior classroom doors, Kearney said.

Pude also explained that security of buildings is only the first step in protecting students.

“We all need to work together to make sure our schools and communities are safe,” she said. The Bradford school district works with school resource officers who patrol all school buildings, as well as mental health supports, which Pude said have been increased in all buildings in recent years.

As far as prevention is concerned, local superintendents echoed the sentiments that even though they are prepared and always striving to improve their safety measures there is no guarantee that an incident cannot occur.

“Although there is no 100% method to control these horrific incidents, the KASD has been proactive and invested time and finances to install measures for the safety of the students and staff,” Kearney said. “The district is always looking for ways to improve the safety of our facilities which will ensure all students and staff are protected.”

She noted that “we live in a society that is permissive. We have laws that protect everyone, including those students who exhibit concern. No entity can 100% guarantee that nothing will ever happen in our schools or town.”

However, she said, “School districts everywhere put the safety of their students and staff as a No. 1 priority.”

Bradford Mayor James McDonald also spoke out in regards to the recent gun-violence across the nation.

“Although our community is insulated from most of the types of events that grab national headlines because of our rural location, the reality is that gun violence in schools doesn’t seem to follow any set pattern based on geographic location,” he said. “That being said, our school district employs three highly trained and vigilant school resource officers to protect our children against all threats to their safety.

“In addition to the protection that our police provide, I know that the safety of each and every student matters greatly to the teachers and administration in our local schools,” the mayor continued. “Bradford City Police Chief Ward and BASD Superintendent Katy Pude are in constant contact about any and all issues involving the well-being of our kids.”

Pude said no parent should ever have to worry about sending their child to school and have a tragedy such as what happened in Texas occur.

“Our heartfelt sympathy is with the entire school community and families of the victims of this senseless crime,” Pude said.

Kearney added, “Our thoughts and prayers are with all those families who lost loved ones and to all those first responders, teachers, students, staff and communities involved.”