The Pelham Union Free School District Board of Education voted to adopt an updated districtwide safety plan on Nov. 5 after a presentation by Alteras consultant Tom Drake about recent New York State Education Department guidance.

Drake summarized the state guidance that added language and expectations related to cardiac events, AED locations and training: "It also has guidance related to AEDs, where the AEDs are located, where we list them, how we list them within the building," he said, noting the district already lists AED locations in building plans and red emergency folders in classrooms.

Drake said Pelham has integrated stop‑the‑bleed kits into AED boxes in most buildings, maintains a regular cycle of CPR and first‑aid training, and will add required cardiac‑event training to recurring staff training plans. He described the NYSED guidance as released late in the summer and said state advice was to close public comment, vote, and then reopen a public comment period when guidance is updated.

Board members then moved to close public comment and voted to approve the updated districtwide safety plan; the motion passed by voice vote with no oppositions recorded.

The approved plan will be implemented with additional staff training and coordination with local emergency responders, and Alteras will help the district continue debriefs and refinements after any emergency incidents.