District Administrators came together for an Administrative Council Retreat to prepare themselves, their buildings and staff for the start of the school year. Administrators discussed a variety of topics including educational leadership skills, evaluation models and most important student safety.  
   
Deer Park Aquatic Director and American Red Cross instructor Jeanne-Marie Kavanagh facilitated an American Red Cross Adult and Child Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Automated External Defibrillation (AED) training sponsored by the American Red Cross Schools and Community First Aid/CPR/AED program. The comprehensive training provided all District Administrators with the knowledge and skills necessary to help sustain life and minimize the consequences of breathing and cardiac emergencies until advanced medical assistance arrives.

The program’s content and activities combined online media and testing with physical skill scenarios which helped district personnel learn how to recognize potentially life-threatening emergencies and make appropriate decisions and actions for rapid medical assistance. Critical skills learned included providing care for conscious choking, unconscious choking, rescue breathing for a child, CPR for an adult or child, and when and how to appropriately use an Automated External Defibrillator.

This proactive program prepared district administrators to be in the best position to provide assistance should anyone in the school community require it and with the completion of the intensive training administrators received American Red Cross certificates.