Building Safety Designations

Hold is the protocol used when hallways and common areas need to be kept clear of occupants. Hold is designed to maintain a controlled, secure environment and prevent movement or access in specific areas during a situation that may require further action or evaluation, such as an altercation, privacy issue, or medical incident.

During a Hold, there may be a need for students who are not in a classroom to proceed to an area where they can be supervised and remain safe. “Hold in your room or area. Clear the Halls” will be announced twice. 

Students and teachers are to remain in their classroom or area, even if there is a scheduled class change until the all-clear is announced. Students and staff in common areas, like a cafeteria or a gym, may be asked to remain in those areas or move to adjoining areas like a locker room. Students and staff outside of the building should remain outside unless the administration directs otherwise.

Secure is the protocol used to safeguard people within the building. Secure will be used for more common incidents where a potentially harmful hazard, such as wildlife on the grounds, police activity in the surrounding community, or suspicious people or circumstances outside on campus. In Secure status, all students are brought indoors, exterior and classroom doors are locked, and blinds are drawn, but the educational process and classroom activities may continue.

“Secure! Get Inside. Lock outside doors. Students and staff, the school is currently in the Secure Action due to [cause] in the neighborhood. No one is allowed in or out of the building at this time. Stay inside and continue with your day.” will be announced twice.

The Secure Action demands bringing people into a secure building and locking all outside access points.

Where possible, classroom activities would continue uninterrupted. Classes being held outside would return to the building and, if possible, continue inside the building.

Lockdown is the protocol used to secure individual rooms and keep occupants quiet and in place.

Lockdowns are meant to isolate students and staff from active threats of violence, such as confirmed explosives, armed intruders, and other mortal threats that may occur in a school or in the vicinity of a school. Staff and students will receive instruction so that in the event of the breach of security of a school building or campus, staff, students, and visitors will be able to take positions in secure enclosures. Lockdown drills will be trauma-informed and age and developmentally appropriate. Lockdown drills will not include live simulations of or reenactments of active shooter scenarios.

“Lockdown! Locks, Lights, Out of Sight!” will be announced twice. The Lockdown Action advises making rooms look unoccupied by locking individual classroom doors, offices, and other securable areas, moving occupants out of the line of sight of corridor windows, turning off lights, and having occupants maintain silence.

Shelter-in-Place is always followed by the hazard and a safety strategy and is the protocol for group and self-protection.

Shelter-in-Place is designed to limit the exposure of students and staff to violent weather, such as lightning and windstorms, and hazardous materials, such as chemical, biological, or radiological contaminants released into the environment, by isolating the inside environment from the outside. Staff and students will receive instruction so that they will be able to remain inside and take the steps necessary to eliminate or minimize the health and safety hazard.

“Shelter! For a [hazard name]. Using safety strategy.” will be announced twice. Safety strategies may include: evacuating to a shelter area, sealing the room, dropping, cover and hold, and getting to high ground.

Evacuation may be followed a location and is used to move people from one location to a different location in or out of the building.

When an emergency within a school or its surrounding area necessitates evacuation and/or total or partial closure of the schools within the district, staff will be responsible for aiding in the safe evacuation of the students from the endangered school to its surrounding area.

Staff and students will receive instruction so that in the event the school or area needs to be evacuated due to threats, such as fires, chemical spills, earthquakes, etc. They will be able to leave the building in the shortest time possible and take the safest route possible to a designated reunification site.

“Evacuate! To a Location” will be announced twice. The Evacuate Action demands students and staff move in an orderly fashion to a safe area.

When the students and staff are evacuated off-site, they may be walking to a different location or being transported to the location and there will be an organized reunification of students and parents/guardians at that site.