Sacramento City Unified officials are urging parents to follow common sense safety guidelines this Halloween (Monday, October 31) to ensure a fun, worry-free holiday for students and families.

“We want to see every student in class on Tuesday morning ready to learn,” said SCUSD Sacramento Police Lt. Katherine Lester, who heads SCUSD security services. “That can only happen if adults make sure that kids adhere to rules about safe walking, safe trick-or-treating and safe snacking.”

Lt. Lester also asks neighbors who live near schools to watch out for vandals, arsonists and thieves who use the holiday as an excuse to be destructive. SCUSD serves 43,000 students on 82 campuses – most of them in residential neighborhoods. “The schools belong to all of us and we all need to be guardians of these valuable public resources,” she said.

Here are a few helpful tips for a safe Halloween:

• Kids should always be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult while trick-or-treating.
• Children should never go out alone on Halloween.
• Only visit well-lit doorways and never enter a home or car.
• Remain on well-lit streets and always use the sidewalk.
• Never cut across yards or use alleys.
• Carry flashlights and cellphones. Teach children how to dial 9-1-1 for help.
• Make sure all children are home well before Sacramento’s 10 p.m. curfew for minors.
• Choose bright and reflective costumes.
• Throw out any treats that are homemade or not factory-wrapped.

Neighbors are asked to report suspicious activity on SCUSD campuses to police by calling (916) 264-5471. Residents outside city boundaries should call the county Sheriff’s Department at (916) 874-5115. School security can also be called 24 hours a day, seven days a week at (916) 643-7444.