Recently, Jefferson Elementary School participated in an Evacu-Chair training session, and the volunteer evacuee was none other than Principal Kim Nieves. The training is part of a City School District of New Rochelle program to prepare schools to have smooth, safe techniques to evacuate disabled students down staircases during an emergency.
“Safety is our No. 1 priority,” Nieves said. “The Evacu-Chair training was productive and will prepare us for real emergencies. We all learned that with practice, the Evacu-Chair is easy to manage. Being put in the evacuation chair, I learned that anyone, big or small, in the chair will be safe. We will continue using the chair during our drills so that we will all be comfortable in the event of an emergency.”
Several Jefferson faculty and staff members practiced guiding the Evacu-Chair down the stairs. Evacu-Chairs have been in place in every district school for years, and several chairs were added to potentially accommodate additional students. The district Facilities Department provided the training, which is done on an ongoing basis.