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August 29, 2025
GLPS Families,
The 2025-2026 school year is officially underway! Overall, we had a great launch to the school year this week. It was wonderful to see students and staff back in our classrooms, learning and growing! I had a chance to spend time in all of the buildings throughout the week, and I was impressed with how quickly routines were established, and how engaged our kids were in learning already. Thank you for your support, thank you for being a part of Grand Ledge Public Schools, and thank you for trusting us with your child’s education. We take our role very seriously, and we take great pride in the work that we do here every day.
For my message this week, I wanted to take a moment to share some information in regards to school safety, especially in light of the tragic school shooting in Minneapolis on Wednesday. Our hearts go out to the families and communities impacted by the violence that occurred there, and it highlights the importance of remaining vigilant to keep our schools and community safe.
To start, I want to remind families that throughout Eaton County, we have a strong partnership with local law enforcement and our prosecutor’s office. Through that partnership, we have developed a threat assessment protocol that we use in our schools whenever any type of threat is reported. This process involves law enforcement, and it is supported by Doug Lloyd, the Eaton county prosecutor. As he has done for the last few years, Prosecutor Lloyd has written a letter to share with families, which can be viewed here. In addition, we have two school resource officers through a strong partnership with the City of Grand Ledge and its police department. Officers Brown and Thie do a great job of building relationships with students and families, and while they are stationed at Beagle Middle School and the high school, they provide support and assistance throughout the district, and help coordinate with local law enforcement at our buildings that are not located in the city limits.
This summer, we completed the final secure entry project in the district at Neff. Now, all of our school buildings require visitors to buzz into a vestibule and then enter the office before having access to the building. In addition, all entrances to all of our buildings are constantly monitored, and can be viewed at all times on screens in our offices. We have increased playground safety throughout the district as well, adding gates and barriers in places where the play area is adjacent to a parking lot.
It is also important to note that the best way to keep our schools safe is to know where there are issues and to understand safety concerns that exist. That means we need help from you and from our students. Please make sure that concerns are reported immediately. If your child hears something at school, or you see something on social media, that sounds like it could be a safety issue, please report it to your child’s school office immediately. We are only as good as the information we receive, so please make sure that if you are aware of a threat, that you immediately report it to law enforcement, your child’s school, or Okay2Say. Remember, do not leave a voicemail; make sure that you connect with a person.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not recognize and highlight Chris Chester. Chris is the GLPS Student Safety Supervisor. A former police officer with over two decades of experience, including eleven years as the school resource officer at the high school, Chris brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to his role, and he spends his days providing training and support to our school staff, as well as ensuring that we have strong safety protocols in place and that we are following them. We are fortunate to have someone with Chris’s expertise as a part of our leadership team.
As you know, our mission is Growing Learners and Preparing Students, and our vision is Grand Ledge Public Schools will provide every student a high-quality education, critical thinking skills, and social development to reach their highest potential in a safe and inclusive environment. Safety means emotional safety, which comes through a feeling of belonging and affirmation, but also physical safety, which comes through a sense of security. When students feel safe, they can learn, and when students learn, they grow.
I am looking forward to an outstanding year of learning and growth here at GLPS, and as I mentioned in my video last week, I am honored to have the opportunity to be the lead learner in the district. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to work with you and your children every day, and thank you for your support. As always, I am #proudtobeacomet!
Dr. Bill Barnes
Superintendent of Schools
