1. For Immediate Release
December 14, 2012 Contact: Music Watson
858-292-3719 (office)
619-818-6507 (cell)
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT STATEMENT ON THE NEWTWON, CN SHOOTING
Dr. Randy Ward, San Diego County Superintendent of Schools, released the following statement today
regarding the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.
Our unspoken agreement with families is that you send kids to school and we keep them safe, sound and send
them back a little smarter. As a parent, that’s certainly the case for me.
For parents today in Newtown, Connecticut, that agreement has been shattered by this unimaginable tragedy.
All of us who work with children take our responsibility to keep them safe very seriously. It’s at the heart and
soul of everything we do. You can’t educate children without them being safe. As this morning’s incident
shows, sometimes, in spite of our best intentions, evil forces upend our unspoken agreement.
The people in Newtown are in our thoughts and prayers this morning. This is every parent’s worst nightmare.
Unfortunately, it is one we here in San Diego County are all too familiar with.
There is no easy way to make sense of tragedies such as this, but as adults, we are charged with helping our children and
keeping them safe. Locally, school administrators and counselors will be meeting amongst themselves and with students
to discuss this incident and answer their questions. I also encourage parents to speak with your children about the
importance of alerting the appropriate authorities when they see or hear something suspicious on or near their campuses.
Every San Diego County school has established a safety plan and lockdown procedures that contribute to
maintaining a safe learning environment for our students. In the wake of this incident, school personnel will
be reviewing those plans and continuing our ongoing relationship with law enforcement to ensure we do
everything we can to maintain the safety and security of our schools. San Diego County Office of Education
staff stand ready, as do community partners such as County Mental Health, to provide resources to help
students and staff who need additional resources to process this tragedy.
About the San Diego County Office of Education
The San Diego County Office of Education provides a variety of services for the 42 school districts and five
community college districts in the county. We support 747 schools and 497,916 students. In addition, the
Office provides regional services for surrounding counties in many areas. Services provided by the County
Office to school districts range from district and school improvement to budget approval and monitoring. The

2. mission of the San Diego County Office of Education, as a world-class educational leader and trusted partner,
is to transform public education and guarantee high levels of student achievement.
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