Chaos prevented by new system

L-R: Steven Aslanian, Broker Associate, Re-Max OlsonDeborah Huyette, Director of School-Team; John Cofiell, First Rate Financial; Susan Stone, GRI, Broker Associate, White House Properties; Tony KnightSuperintendent, Oak Park Unified School District; Maria Powell, Aviara Real Estate and Joseph Dotzler, Sr. VPFinancial Title Company. Oak Park Unified School District Superintendent Tony Knight was awaken by phone at 4 a.m. Sept. 29 to learn that the Topanga Fire was threatening Oak Park residents. Fortunately, he did not have to worry about driving through road blocks to access critical information at the district office or about using archaic telephone trees to notify parents that all district schools would be closed that day.

Thanks to the new computerized telecommunications system sponsored by School-Team, “I was able to communicate with the parents of our 3,800 students inside of five minutes,” said Knight. “The firefighters remarked that the call notifying parents that schools would be closed that day also alerted families that had no idea that the fire was burning in Oak Park. This allowed people more time to prepare for possible evacuations which did come later that morning to many Oak Park residents. We also used the system the second day to communicate to parents that schools would remain closed for a second day and were able to stay in touch with parents over the entire episode.”

With a price tag of several thousand dollars per year for each school, the system is too costly for already stretched school budgets. Thanks to the generosity of local business people, most of whom are in the real estate industry, the public schools in Agoura, Oak Park and Westlake Village have access to this potentially lifesaving service.

Sponsors are Joseph Dotzler, Sr. VP, Financial Title Company; John Cofiell, First Rate Financial; Steven (Broker Associate) and Caroline Aslanian, Re/Max Olson; Maria Powell, Aviara Real Estate and Susan Stone, GRI, Broker Associate, White House Properties.