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Emergency Plans

Emergency Plans & Procedures

25-26 District Safety Plan DRAFT 26-27 District Safety Plan

 

District-Wide Safety & Emergency Management Plan

The health and safety of our students and staff is our number one priority. Our District-Wide Safety & Emergency Management Plan provides an overview of our safety processes. Each school has its own building-level safety plan that aligns with the district plan and provides detailed and confidential information for building-specific safety and emergency management protocols.

Emergency management in our schools is the continuous process by which our staff, students, administrators, parents, school groups, emergency responders and our community manage hazards in an effort to avoid or mitigate the impact of disasters resulting from hazards. Preventive measures and good planning may reduce the likelihood that emergencies will occur and allow us to address those that do in an expeditious and effective manner.

Each school has a safety committee and the District has a District-wide Safety Committee. Participating on that committee are representatives from all our stakeholder groups – parents, teachers, administrators, village officials, emergency responders, our police department and our medical staff. We are fortunate here in Pleasantville to have a strong collaborative relationship with our police, fire and emergency responders.

 

How Can Families Prepare for a School Emergency?

  1. Update your emergency contact information in the parent portal (select the child, select contact verification). Make sure all emergency contacts are up to date and phone numbers for emergency contacts are current.
    • If you can, include someone local as one of your emergency contacts. Proximity counts in an emergency.
    • Use cell phone numbers as your primary numbers. Add any secondary number(s).
  2. Sign up for ParentSquare and make sure your contact information in the system is always up to date. This is the system the district uses to contact you in an emergency.

 

What to Do During a School Emergency: Stay Home, Stay Informed, Be Ready

  • Do not go to the school or any other location until you are notified to do so.
    • Your vehicle on the road or parking lot will slow the law enforcement and/or other emergency personnel response.
    • Your presence will interfere with emergency services.
    • Staff are busy managing the incident and taking care of children. We cannot tend to family members’ needs.
    • Students may be offsite.
  • Wait for instructions from school officials or emergency responders.
    • We will provide information as soon as we can. Please understand that we can only report facts as we know them.
  • We will notify you to tell you where to go to pick up your child.
    • If you can, walk to the location -- do not drive, as traffic could slow the process.
    • Bring a Photo ID when you come to be reunified with your child.
  • Whoever is coming needs to be a parent or an identified emergency contact on the parent portal. Only parents or individuals authorized on the child’s emergency contacts from the parent portal will be able to pick up your child.

 

Get accurate information and instructions:

 

How Communication Around an Incident Will Be Made:

  • Text may come with limited information and may direct you to an email with more information.
  • Text may also contain a link to a website with more information.
  • To the extent possible, additional information will be sent throughout the duration of the emergency.
  • Do not rely on information on social media or coming from individuals in the situation.
  • Information from the district will be verified and accurate.

 

Safety Protocols

Each year the district practices our safety protocols. If your child speaks with you about a safety drill, you may refer to the protocols below for explanation.

 

Shelter in Place

When a “shelter in place” is used, students and staff are typically required to remain indoors, perhaps for an extended period of time, because it is safer inside the building than it is outside. Depending on the threat or hazard, students and staff may be required to move to rooms or areas without windows. As an example, a “shelter in place” may be called in the event of a severe weather emergency, such as a tornado.

 

Hold in Place

A “hold in place” is used to limit movement of students and staff while dealing with short term emergencies. This is intended to keep students and staff out of the affected area until the situation can be rectified. In general, students and staff will remain in their current classes until the hold in place has been lifted. As an example, a “hold in place” may be called in the event there is an altercation in a hallway, a maintenance issue in the building, or a medical emergency.

 

Evacuation

An “evacuation” is used to evacuate students and staff from the building. Each school has procedures for an evacuation; typically, we would evacuate due to a fire or a gas leak in the building.

 

Lockout

A “lockout” is used when there is an actual or perceived threat outside of the school. Students and staff follow the normal school schedule during a lockout, except that no one is allowed outdoors, and normally people are not allowed to enter the school. A lockout may be called when the school receives a report of criminal activity occurring nearby, or when there are reports of a dangerous animal outside of the school.

 

Lockdown

A “lockdown” is initiated when there is an actual or perceived imminent threat inside or around the school. The primary objective of a lockdown is to quickly ensure that school staff, students, and visitors are secured in rooms away from the immediate danger. Individuals will be kept within locked rooms until the incident is brought to a close by law enforcement personnel.

 

Reunification

“Reunification” is a formal process that is initiated after a major incident has occurred. If the need arises where students are to be moved to an off-site location, families will be directed as to where they can pick up their children. The goal of this process is to reunite students with an authorized parent, guardian or emergency contact. This process may take a long period of time but helps staff and safety personnel account for students.

 

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