Superintendents to offer insight on gun violence and school safety at informational hearing, March 12

On Tuesday, March 12, the second of a five-part series of special informational hearings on "Curbing Gun Violence" will begin during the Oakland County Board of Commissioners' Public Services Committee meeting. The meeting begins at 11:30 a.m. and will follow the regular agenda items. The meeting will be held in the Oakland County Board of Commissioners' Committee Room A located at 1200 Telegraph Road in Pontiac and will be webcast live. Public Services Committee Chairman Bill Dwyer and Commissioner Marcia Gershenson are continuing their bipartisan effort to examine how Oakland County citizens are protected from gun violence. Commissioner Dwyer, who is a former police chief and Commissioner Marcia Gershenson, who is a former teacher, are passionate about seeking solutions to this issue. The hearing will include the following educational panelists to speak from a school safety perspective is: * Birmingham Schools Superintendent Daniel Nerad. * Lake Orion Schools Superintendent Marion Ginopolis. * South Lyon Schools Superintendent Bill Pearson. * Walled Lake Schools Superintendent Ken Gutman. These superintendents will discuss and answer questions relating to school safety and look at what lessons may be learned from the Newtown and Columbine tragedies. "Kids cannot learn unless they feel safe. Oakland County schools are on the front lines for protecting our most innocent every day and we want to find out how we can use county, federal, and state resources to help. This will be a great opportunity to hear about different school safety measures from Superintendents from many areas in Oakland County. As a law enforcement veteran, I know there is no substitute for good planning and having an effective strategy to avoid tragedies like what we have seen in recent years," Dwyer stated. Gershenson, a former school teacher, shared his sentiments stating, "I am looking forward to hearing from superintendents on their existing plans and future ideas on how to keep our kids safe in schools. Gun violence has escalated over the years and was not a major focus when I was in the classroom. However, that has changed and we need government, law enforcement and the educational community to be working together, sharing experiences and ideas. Hopefully, this panel will help us find solutions." Due to interest on the issue of gun violence, Dwyer has expanded the informational hearings from a three-part series to five. The next three hearings will include representatives from the U.S. Attorney General's Office, the F.B.I., A.T.F, and the State Police. Other hearings will include representatives from the mental health profession and Second Amendment supporters with upcoming meeting dates to be announced in the months of April and May. All informational hearings will immediately follow the regular Public Services Committee meeting which begins at 11:30 a.m. All meetings are open to the public and public input is welcome. Published: Thu, Mar 7, 2013

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