School Safety

  • Children listening to a Readaloud

School Safety

 

Every school currently has procedures for emergencies. Drills are conducted throughout the year to prepare our staff and students, and make improvements in emergency planning. Under the new General Response Protocol (GRP), every school will be conducting drills designed to help prepare all school communities for three different types of response to emergencies that may occur: evacuation, shelter-in, and lockdown.
 
 
Training has begun in many schools and will continue for staff and students throughout the school year. This training is designed to be age appropriate and to ensure that students understand the importance of these drills without causing unnecessary alarm. Please review the General Response Protocols that have been given to all students, and discuss these procedures with your child.
 
 
You are encouraged to take advantage of the many resources that are available to keep families informed if there is an emergency at a school. All families are reminded to update the Emergency Contact Cards that are on file in our school. This includes providing information indicating phone numbers, and the names of adults to whom the school may release your child in an emergency. Families are also encouraged to register with Notify NYC (open external link) to receive information about emergency events, and call 311 for additional information about a school during an emergency.
 
Soft Lockdown - (Look - Lights - Lock - Line of Sight)
Cover door windows, stop teaching, hide in a place in your room with your students where you are out of line of sight.
 
Hard Lockdown - (Look - Lights - Lock - Line of Sight)
Cover door windows, stop teaching, hide in a place in your room with your students where you are out of line sight.
HIDE - RUN - FIGHT is only recommended when you cannot hide. Fight should only be when the intruder has broken into your classroom/space and you are able to fight.  A LOCKDOWN is a LOCKDOWN for a teacher, Soft or Hard!
 
Shelter-in -   The threat is outside the building.
ALL exit doors are locked and secured.  NO ONE may enter or exit the building.  It is business as usual in the building during a Shelter-In. The bells ring, students may use the pass, teachers keep teaching, and students move period to period.  Teachers and students may not leave the building if they are done for the day and the building is still in a shelter-in.
 
Lock & Hold -  Incident or condition inside the building where the BRT needs to stabilize the building.  
Bells will be turned OFF or the announcement will made to “disregard the bells until the Lock & Hold has been lifted”.  CONTINUE teaching your lesson with students sitting at their desk.  Students will remain in place with you until the Lock & Hold is lifted.  Teachers will lock their doors and keep children in their rooms.  Do not issue the pass!
 
Evacuation -  When the Fire Alarms ring, evacuate to your outdoor staging area.  Use the stairwells and exits that are listed on the evacuation poster in your classroom.  Bring your Assembly Card with you and RE-TAKE attendance to ensure that you can account for all your students and hold up the appropriate assembly card signal.