CFPD Back to School Safety Tips

To prepare community members for the back-to-school season, the CFISD police department
issued a series of back-to-school safety tips on social media prior to the first day of school on Aug. 24.

Although the tips are especially important as commuters transition from the summer vacation to the school season, Chief Alan Bragg recommends keeping these tips in mind the entire school year so 2015-2016 can be as safe and rewarding as possible:

1. Allow extra time for travel and heavy traffic during the first couple weeks of school.
2. Carpool to reduce the number of vehicles at the school.
3. Observe the 20 mph school zones.
4. Use of cell phones in active school zones is illegal.
5. When school zone lights are flashing, slow to 20 MPH and yield to pedestrians crossing the crosswalk or intersection.
6. School Buses:  If the red lights are flashing and the stop arm is extended, traffic must STOP!
7. Always stop for a school crossing guard holding up a stop sign.
8. Never pass a vehicle stopped for pedestrians!
9. Double parking is DANGEROUS; it blocks visibility for other children and vehicles
10. Do not load or unload children across the street from the school!
11. The area 10 feet around a school bus is the most dangerous for children; stop far enough back to allow them space to safely enter and exit the bus.
12. Be alert; children often are unpredictable, and they tend to ignore hazards and take risks.

Did you get the message?

CFISD conducted a test of the emergency notification system on Jan. 28. Parents who were signed up through SchoolMessenger‘s Contact Manager program received a text message, email and phone call during the test. If you did not receive all three notifications, you may not be registered or your registration may be incomplete. Please note, you may be receiving communication from your campus but not be signed up in the new system.

To register or update your information, go to the SchoolMessenger website. You will need your student’s ID number and access to the phone number listed as your emergency contact to complete this process. After logging in, make sure the box next to each phone number and email address has a check by it. Detailed instructions are available on the district website. 

Sign up to help us reach you where you are.

Emergency Notification Test

CFISD will send out a test on Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 5:30 p.m. via its mass notification system, SchoolMessenger, to confirm that parents are signed up to receive emergency messages from the district.

Parents who are already signed up in the system will receive a phone call, text and an email.

Parents who only receive a phone call may not be registered in SchoolMessenger. To ensure that parents are signed up in the system and that all contact information is current, log on to www.cfisd.net/messenger and follow the simple instructions.

The easy, one-time process requires only three things for parents:

• The ID number for each student in the family; 

• The primary phone number on file with the school(s); and 

• A valid email address. 

General questions about SchoolMessenger can be directed to the CFISD Customer Care Center at 281-955-4030 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Monday through Friday. Questions regarding student ID number and primary phone number on file can be directed to the school.

SchoolMessenger Launch

CFISD is pleased to announce the launch of SchoolMessenger, the district's new mass notification system, to keep CFISD families informed about:

• district and campus activities;

• attendance; 

• transportation; 

• food service; and, most importantly, 

• accurate, real-time information during an emergency situation.

With the previous communication system, families were only contacted at one phone number—usually a landline. The new system is designed to send phone calls, emails and text messages, allowing users to select how they prefer to be contacted. This way, CFISD can be in contact with you where you are during any time of the day—no more important missed communications. Users will be able to update contact information themselves, ensuring that the most current information is on file. They can also add contact information for multiple people, choosing which alerts they will receive. The system works like a mailbox, giving users a place to review messages they may have missed.

A letter was mailed home to CFISD families on Sept. 10 explaining the process for signing up. Each letter contained the individual login information for each student. If you did not receive this letter, or need help signing up, please contact the CFISD Customer Care Center at 281-955-4030. This phone number is specifically for members of the community seeking assistance with SchoolMessenger. The Care Center’s operating hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

iWatch App

iWatch is a virtual crime watch that the CFISD community can use to anonymously report suspicious behaviors and activities. Using the iWatch mobile app, you can:

• send a text tip;
• send a complete tip with images and videos; or 
• call the tip hotline using nearly any smartphone. 

Apps are available for iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Windows phones. Links to download iWatch to your mobile device are available at http://www.iwatchharriscounty.com. You can read the official press release on the CFISD website. 

Here is a tutorial with photos explaining what to do after downloading the app: 

1.

After installing and opening the free app, tap enter iWatch.

Matzke WatchD.O.G.S. Program Launch

Photo by Scott Moore

The Matzke Elementary School WatchD.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) program got off to a great start with a pizza night for all the Matzke fathers on Sept. 15.

More than 100 WatchD.O.G.S. and their children showed up for the event, where they signed up forWatchD.O.G.S. days to volunteer at the campus throughout the school year.

Matzke received donations from H-E-B, McDonald’s and Dattz Pizza for the program launch.

“The best part of the night was when one daddy signed up next to another one, and they shook hands and introduced each other and kept chatting about the program,” said Matzke assistant principal Kyla Mote. “We brought the community together. Many dads volunteered to help more than the one day that we asked of them. It was a total success!”

ACBM Removal and Compliance

In accordance with Environmental Protection Agency 40 CFR 765 regulations, all parents and district employees are hereby informed that inspection of asbestos containing building material (ACBM) in Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District facilities was recently performed.

This inspection confirmed that the district's buildings are in compliance, and that the district continues to provide a safe environment for its staff and students. The individual building re-inspection reports are on file in the Management Plan books located in facility administration areas.

Additionally, during the past twelve (12) months, ACBM was removed from Watkins Middle School. For more information contact Archie Hayes, Director of Maintenance, at 281-897-4292.