Drill Observation

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The safety of students is our first priority and as part of the Emergency Operations Committee, I was a leading member in reevaluating our lockdown and fire drill procedures this year, specifically planning for a possible lockdown when students were in the cafeteria. I worked with Jory Higgins, head of the committee, and the other members of the committee to plan for a drill in such an open and noisy environment. We also consulted with the town police and School Resource Officer.
Jory Higgins and I attempted to anticipate obstacles and the best time to implement the drill with as little impact to instruction as possible. We chose to conduct the drill during a STRIDE or school specials (i.e. music, PE, ISTEM) for each grade level. During the drill, I timed each …show more content…

In both cases, as in any emergency situation, there is always the “what if?” Many staff members were concerned with the entire school stationed in one place on the basketball courts as the drill occurred closely after the mass shooting in Las Vegas. Some staff suggested creating barricades with staff cars in the staff lot or sitting in between rows of cars. We listened to the concerns and suggestions, but ultimately, we cannot plan for every, “what if” situation. The state also released new guidelines for shades during lock down drills. Staff was concerned that with the shades up we were more like “sitting ducks,” and that the film on our windows does not hold back bullets but rather objects like chairs or blunt weapons. As we gathered feedback and worked through their concerns we modified our plans slightly and created a google doc with all student and staff names. This document will be used in case of a reunification process, during which staff will check off the students with them in a room and their location to account for everyone. We are still working through the scenario in case the internet is down or power is

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