School Safety
Corporal Gerrod Visel
Corporal Gerrod Visel is truly a homegrown School Resource Officer. He graduated from Dexter High School in 1994 and lives here with his family.
Visel earned a degree in Criminal Justice from Ferris State University. He has been with the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office for twenty years, fifteen of them in the K-9 unit. K-9 partner Karn joins Visel on the job.
Corporal Visel's main office is at the high school but he works in all of the buildings.
Washtenaw County School Liaison Program
The School Liaison Officer Program is part of a cooperative effort between education, law enforcement, and the community. The program promotes positive and effective communication between youth, teachers and law enforcement.
The goals of the program are:
- Create a safer school environment by:
- Encouraging more positive attitudes towards rules, laws and society;
- Supporting conflict resolution and the responsibilities of citizenship;
- Teaching young people the concepts of the criminal justice system, objectives of law enforcement--as it regards public and individual safety;
- Assisting in the prevention of delinquency and criminal activity among young people.
- Dispel misconceptions about law enforcement and society;
- Act as a sounding board for student and parent concerns;
- Act as liaison with courts, social services and other community programs;
- Be a resource for information and community presenters.
For more information about the program, please visit their website.
School Safety Drills
Each Dexter Community school complies with all fire safety laws and will conduct fire drills in accordance with State law. Schools will finalize and file their drill schedules by September 15 and notify authorities. Specific instructions on how to proceed will be provided to students by their teachers who will be responsible for the safe, prompt, and orderly evacuation of the building. Within thirty days of the end of the school year, drills will be posted on the district website for public review, or year-to-date emergency drill information may be requested from the building principal during the school year. Tornado drills will be conducted before the tornado season, using the procedures provided by the State. The alarm signal for tornadoes is different from the alarm signal for fires. In order for students and staff to be appropriately prepared for unusual circumstances other than fires and tornados, safety drills will be conducted that are appropriate for the age of the child.
MCL 29.19 mandates that districts post documentation about school safety drills on their websites.