Goshen Community Schools will conduct a TEST of the Schools’ Emergency Notification System on November 21, 2019. This will be a TEST to ensure that in the event of an actual school emergency, GCS will have the ability to contact the parents and guardians of ALL students.

1. As GCS prepares for the test, we ask that GCS parents and guardians help GCS to make this the most thorough, far-reaching broadcast GCS has ever sent.
2. To do that, we need all parents and guardians to update their phone number(s) and email(s) in our student system, Skyward. Do you need help doing this? Go to skyward.goshenschools.org and click “Help Getting Started”. You may also contact your child’s school or teacher to add your email to Skyward, if you have not already done so.
3. To provide everyone with a “physical reminder”, we will kick off our Emergency Notification Campaign when the city’s emergency siren sounds on Thursday, November 14th at 2:00. At that time, we ask that parents and guardians go into Skyward, and review and update contact information. GCS parents and guardians will be given until November 20th to complete the task; this will ensure that updates are received.
4. We will send information about the TEST of our Emergency Notification Campaign home with elementary students in Monday folders on Monday, November 18th. We will also send the information home with GMS students on November 15th. The information will be made available to GHS students and families through the school’s daily announcements. All schools will have this information posted on their web pages, Twitter and Facebook.
5. During our Emergency TEST on November 21, we will contact parents and guardians and provide information in the following ways: School Messenger (phone calls), via email, via a post on the GCS website www.goshenschools.org/, on the GCS Twitter account at twitter.com/goshenschools and on the GCS Facebook page at facebook.com/goshen.schools If you are not following the GCS social media accounts, you may want to consider doing so.
6. On Thursday, November 21st when the city siren sounds at 2:00 p.m., we will conduct the TEST of our Emergency Notification System. We will send out an announcement that says: THIS IS A TEST. Goshen Community Schools is conducting a TEST of our Emergency Notification System. If you received this message, you are prepared to get emergency messages from Goshen Schools.
7. If parents or guardians do NOT get the information when we conduct the official TEST at 2:00 p.m. on November 21st, and only hear about it from others, they will know that their contact information is incorrect or insufficient and needs to be updated. (See item #2 to update contact information.)
8. It will always be the intent of GCS to send out emergency information in both English and Spanish. However, due to certain logistics, under some emergency situations GCS may initially post information in English. The same message will be available in Spanish as quickly as it can be translated.

GCS is conducting this test/emergency procedure to ensure that we can communicate vital information to parents and guardians in the event of an actual school emergency. We hope that families understand the need for GCS to have accurate contact information. Please make sure we can reach you; review and update your information today!

With sincerity and concern for the safety of all GCS students,

The GCS Administration
Dr. Diane Woodworth, Superintendent
Dr. Steven Hope, Deputy Superintendent
Dr. Alan Metcalfe, Assistant Superintendent-Elementary Education
Mrs. Tracey Noe, Executive Director of Curriculum & Instruction
Mrs. Lori Line, Executive Director of Talent Development and Management
Mrs. Susan Stiffney, Director of Human Resource Services and GCS Safety Officer

If you have questions about this test of our Emergency Notification System, you may email Lori Martin at lmartin@goshenschools.org or call 574-533-8631. If you have questions about accessing Skyward to update your information, contact your school registrar or student’s teacher.