FEAR LOW AT VALENCIA HIGH DESPITE SHOOTINGS ELSEWHERE.

Byline: CONNIE LLANOS  Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA -- A group of girls chatted about the long weekend ahead, a cluster of kids listened to iPods while performing skateboard tricks, and other teens streamed out of a library study session.

Under sunny, clear skies Wednesday, students at Valencia High appeared unfazed by the violence that has hit three high schools nationwide in the past week.

``I'm not worried,'' said senior Megan Read, as she rushed off to class.

Campus shootings left a 16-year-old girl dead in Colorado, a principal gunned down in Wisconsin and, in the latest attack, five young girls killed execution-style at an Amish school in Pennsylvania.

During his morning parking-lot duty at Valencia, a campus supervisor, Burt Dominguez, spoke of the focus these days on school security. It started after that spring day in 1999 when two boys gunned down 13 fellow students and a teacher at Columbine High School in Colorado before killing themselves.

At the time, suburban communities throughout the nation were comparing each local campus with the Colorado school. And with that came the realization to Valencia High that campus violence knows no bounds.

``It's not a matter of if; it's a matter of when,'' Valencia's assistant principal, Les Luxmore, said as he prepared his yearly crisis-prevention drill Wednesday morning. ``That's how real it is.''

On foot or rolling in purple golf carts, five or six Valencia campus supervisors patrol different areas of the hilltop campus. Their duties include supervising students during brunch and lunch and checking identification of adult visitors.

``We even check IDs of the construction workers,'' Dominguez said.

Dominguez, also a football coach, said he has a personal reason for staying alert: His daughter is a senior at Valencia.

He's somewhat confident the campus is well prepared for emergencies. ``Just be aware of your surroundings, all the time,'' he said.

State education officials say campus safety is a priority, and there is always more to be done.

``Our bases are never covered enough,'' said Chuck Nichols, safety and education-programs consultant for the State Department of Education.

Nichols, who works with drug, alcohol and violence-prevention programs statewide, said crisis prevention is a priority, but it is tough to be prepared for any possible situation.

``Short of turning a school into a prison, it is not possible to prevent every single incident,'' Nichols said.

Federal and state funds are provided to schools for crisis prevention and intervention.

The William S. Hart Union High School District has tailored programs to its campuses. Officials have distributed 700-page emergency-response packets and established programs such as the Safe Schools Ambassadors. Student ``ambassadors'' keep their eyes open for potential problems and report them to adults.

Hart officials also work with local law enforcement to coordinate security. The Sheriff's Department has staged emergency drills on local campuses.

``We can never say we are totally safe, but we are aware, and we prepared,'' district spokeswoman Pat Willett said.

At Valencia High, Luxmore talked about preparations for his yearly crisis-prevention drill.

The two-hour drill activates a series of emergency procedures designed to ensure student safety, Luxmore said.

``We need to feel like we can respond. We want to be ready,'' he said.

The school's faculty and other staff members have been assigned to teams, including some students. Each team drills for its assignment, ranging from setting up first-aid stations to helping in search and rescue.

While Luxmore said violence has never been a real issue on his campus, the week's events were heavy on the minds of teachers and administrators.

But for most students on the pristine campus, shootings and chaos are distant possibilities.

``Not at Valencia,'' said senior Cheri Graham.

``Maybe some schools in L.A., but not here. Kids are raised different.''

connie.llanos(at)dailynews.com

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