Kofa and Vista earn record safety committee awards
Vista and Kofa high schools received the maximum “safety committee” award of $10,000 at Yuma Union High School District’s Governing Board meeting on Wednesday, Sep. 11, 2019.
It is the second year in a row that Kofa has tied for the top award and the first time in four years of distributing the annual award that schools have earned the maximum allowable amount of funds. Gila Ridge High School tied with Kofa last year, and San Luis High School received the top award the previous two school years.
Chief Financial Officer Dianne Cordery distributed checks from Board-approved insurance proceeds to the safety committee for each of the six schools in the district last week. In order to be eligible for the funds, the campuses fulfilled several requirements for the 2018-2019 school year.
Each school was required to have a safety committee that meets quarterly and conducts inspections twice per school year. During those meetings and inspections, each committee is looking for building and equipment hazards and safety concerns such as damage to crosswalks and signage. They also monitor injuries on their campus throughout the school year.
Vista and Kofa both received checks in the amount of $10,000 for incurring the fewest safety hazards and injuries on their campus last school year. The committees will choose three proposals for how to spend the funds, and allow students and faculty to vote on which proposal to approve for improving their respective campuses.
“It proves that the safety committee is being proactive on campus to provide a safe environment for our students and staff,” Kofa Principal Mike Sharp said. “These are safety issues that are within our control. Being proactive helps keep safety in the front of mind for everyone on campus and if we put the work into providing the safe environment, it can, in turn, help the things that we can’t control.”
Other safety committee awards included: Cibola High School ($7,500), San Luis High School ($6,000), Gila Ridge High School ($5,800), and Yuma High School ($5,800). Oversized checks were presented to a representative from campus administrative teams by Cordery, Governing Board President Phil Townsend, and Board Members Jacqueline Kravitz and David Lara.
In total, the campuses earned a combined $45,100, which was the most ever by the district since they began distributing safety committee awards after the 2015-16 school year.