Yeah, and if you give me 198 million dollars, I will put CCtV in all the schools and classrooms so you can log on at work and track your child all day just like at doggy day care!

There's always a couple of parents who will never be happy with how the process was handled. They always have to over analyze everything after the fact.

Bubb, the school district, and police did the right thing as far as I'm concerned.

I have a kid at another elementary school and I got an email @ 12:21 yesterday from Craig Goldman, Superintendent Mountain View Whisman School District.

I'm not sure why Richard Haten didn't get one. Maybe he threw it away accidentally or it went into his spam folder? Maybe his wife got the email because she was registered and he's not?
Maybe he just needs to place blame on someone other than himself?

I like the idea of CCTV in public areas. I don't mind big brother watching. Does anyone with a law enforcement background know how effective they are in catching bad guys?

they handled it well, im sure in lue of whats going on with the morgan hill case, and the attempeted one in san jose last week, a lot of parents are on edge. Also, i noticed they only reported about the bubb and the st simmons one but not about the lady in los altos hills that was approached or the report of someone at Springer School as well. I dont have any kids and i know im on edge! but I did notice a a major police presence yesterday in the area... I miss the old days, i grew up here and i remember walking down to my friends house, or biking to cuesta park, or walking to safeway without having to worry about anything.

Goldman said the district has been planning to install security cameras at its campuses. "We're hoping that with the passage of the (Measure G) bond that we will be able to install surveillance cameras at all of our school sites," he said.

This is just a blatant statement to push another bond measure on the taxpayers of this district to over come the mismanagement of the district funds and lack of foresight in projecting the capital needs of the district and focusing on the appeasing the Teachers Unions on pumping up bloated contracts to use all of the funds for their benefit at the expense of the education of the children in the district.

I did receive an email AND a phone call. Some people should also check their contact. It's hard to contact someone with wrong info. I think the district handle it well, better deal with the police before alerting all the parents (imagine the mess if all parents show up at once, it would have been more confusing...and easier for someone to snatch a kid IMHO )

Let's see...

District website says there are 4,969 students in the District.
There are 2 complaining.

I would say that Craig Goldman did pretty well.

What ever happened to good old fashioned supervision? The district did alright, but the solution is not CCTV and more tax dollars wasted. You still need eyes on the CCTV monitors. CCTV could actually degrade good old fashioned supervision if every one is lulled in thinking that the kids are safe because of CCTV that no one is monitoring. And who would be monitoring them anyway?

I agree that Goldman's plug at the end for the bond was stooping pretty low.

Not bad: exactly. This is a manufactured story. Kind of like 2 people who say "darn, it's sunny out...and I was hoping to not turn on my sprinklers today, " while the other 498 are happy to have a nice day.

I recieved my email about 12:20.. Don't know why Richard did not.

Why isn't this campus more secure with fencing and gates? The children have to walk outdoors to get to a bathroom? That seems very unsafe. The school sits next to a public park, much like the Walter Hayes school does in Palo Alto. The only difference is Walter Hayes is fenced and gated while Bubb is wide open to anyone to wander through.

I've lived in Mountain View my entire life (over 50 years) and attended Bubb School back in the day myself. I have to shake my head at people complaining they received notification 15 or 20 minutes after the incident and expected it sooner. In this age of high-tech and fast-paced living, people just expect everything at the snap of a finger. Everyone needs to chill out and realize just how fortunate they are that they're able to get information *that* quickly! Do the people who complain even realize there was a time it would have taken hours upon hours to be notified?

Annoyed Resident:

Yeah, and that's when priests were abusing children with impunity. Those were great times back then when information was hard to get and easy to hide. Shall I go on?

Thank you!!

I do like that the information went out but clearly it cannot go out immediately - they need to wait to assure accuracy and wait for the police.

I did not feel the statement by Craig Goldman was "stooping pretty low". He was answering a question about why we don't have cameras in all the schools. I personally think it unnecessary and bit over-excessive, but these parents who expect an email within moments of an incident want cameras. Craig does not have a money tree and the State's has certainly run dry! He has to get the money somewhere.

- the CCTV system was a part of the bond-funded renovation prior to this incident, Goldman was asked a question about cameras and answered it accurately and appropriately.

- Recall just how well Goldman handled the Science Camp lockdown caused by the shooting at the Kaiser cement plant a while back. Goldman and his staff provided excellent and accurate information to the school community, just like they did in this case.

Thanks, Craig!

Well, Goldman is far better than the con artist Ghysels ever was.

My kids go to a school in the district, I was notified by email, and I am very happy with how the incident was handled by everyone.

We can have security cameras everywhere, force kids to wear GPS devices, build walls around all schools, park police cars at all schools at all times, etc. But who should pay, and do we really want to live in a Soviet-style paranoid police state?

And how much safer would it really make us? After all, 99% of all crimes against children are perpetrated by relatives and acquaintances.

I too have kids at school in the district, and I thought they handled just fine.

Also, I think security camera's on the school grounds are an extremely cost effective measure that is long overdue. Look around people, every government building, 7-11, and red-light-green-light intersection you drive by have cameras. If they are essential for traffic control, they are essential for protecting our kids.

Very simple for you techno/tax-phobes: a camera at Bubb, and there is no perp on the tether ball court.

Superintendent Goldman is perfectly within his duties to address video security in the Bond SFIP. But he should be truthful, rather than 'truthy". Video web based security system is WAY DOWN the priority list (Priority 3, discretionary). Priority 1 and 2 add up to $315 M, much over the $200 M that will come from the bond he mentioned.
Exactly what is the priority list - not determined - no document. Better fences are in the priority 1 list ($240 M) but is that before or after demolition/replacement of 47 permanent classrooms? (again - not determined - no document)
NO on June Bond Measure G

I hear you Steve. I am sure there are some big dollar upgrade items that need approval via a ballot measure.

Security cameras, however, should not be open to discussion, they should simply be installed. Period... just like new speed bumps in the parking lots. They should NOT be allowed to be part of some right-wing, phony anti-tax BS debate.

I first heard about it on facebook, then I got the email and then a phone call. My child goes to Graham, and he told me that at Graham they started the buddy program and they talked about precautions in class. That he and his friends were pretty anxious the rest of the day.
I thought the notification was fine for us at the other schools. If I was a Bubb parent I can see not being happy that the first notification was at 12:15, and I can see the districts side of needing to confirm facts with the police before making a statement. It's a hard situation for everyone to deal with. Everyone involved is doing the best they can in a hard situation, with the first priority of keeping the kids safe.