Albuquerque Public Schools launches reunification cards for school pick-ups after an emergency

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Albuquerque Public Schools is implementing a new process to get students reunited with their parents in a safer and more organized way after an emergency.

Picking up students after a crisis at a school can be stressful. APS parent James Candeleria said he knows that first-hand. “We were outside, there were parents not knowing if it was their kid or where their kid was,” said Candeleria.

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He explained the time he had to pick up his daughter from Washington Middle School after a deadly, on-campus shooting in 2021. “It was chaotic and I wouldn’t want no kids or parents to go through that again,” he said.

APS is launching reunification cards for when parents have to pick up their kids in a “formal, controlled release” after an emergency like extreme weather, power outages, or crime. Soon, parents will get a reunification card unique to each student with their name and a bar code. Families will get two cards per student.

In one of these unique situations, parents will be notified on when and where to pick up their students. They will need to bring a photo ID and reunification card as explained in the district’s informational video on the new process. “The district standard reunification plan is a protocol that makes this more predictable and less chaotic for all involved,” the video explained.

If parents forget the card, they can fill out a reunification form to pick up their students. If parents can’t immediately pick up their kids, students can only be released to pre-verified emergency contacts.

More information on the process can be found here . If parents have further questions, APS asked for them to contact their child’s school.

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