As we continue our focus on back-to-school, today we focus on school safety. This is the first of four parts to be shared regarding school safety. When an urgent issue arises, clear and consistent communication matters. Garrett County Public Schools has adopted The “I Love U Guys” Foundation’s Standard Response Protocol (SRP). Students and staff will be training, practicing, and drilling the protocol.
The SRP uses five standard responses:
📍HOLD
📍 SECURE
📍 LOCKDOWN
📍 EVACUATE
📍 SHELTER
Below, we’ll take a closer look at what each response means and what families should know:
𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐃 “In Your Classroom or Area”
Students are trained to:
– Clear the hallways and remain in their area or room until the “All Clear” is announced
– Do business as usual
Adults and staff are trained to:
– Close and lock the door
– Account for students and adults
– Do business as usual
𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄 “Get Inside. Lock outside doors”
Students are trained to:
– Return to inside of building
– Do business as usual
Adults and staff are trained to:
– Bring everyone indoors
– Lock the outside doors
– Increase situational awareness
– Account for students and adults
– Do business as usual
𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐊𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐍 “Locks, Lights, Out of Sight”
Students are trained to:
– Move away from sight
– Maintain silence
– Do not open the door
Adults and staff are trained to:
– Recover students from the hallway if possible
– Lock the classroom door
– Turn out the lights
– Move away from sight
– Maintain silence
– Do not open the door
– Prepare to evade or defend
𝐄𝐕𝐀𝐂𝐔𝐀𝐓𝐄 “To a Location”
Students are trained to:
– Leave stuff behind if required to
– If possible, bring their phone
– Follow instructions
Adults and staff are trained to:
– Bring roll sheet and Go Bag (unless instructed not to bring anything with them, depending on the reason for evacuation.)
– Lead students to Evacuation location
– Account for students and adults
– Report injuries or problems using Red Card/Green Card method.
𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐓𝐄𝐑 “State Hazard and Safety Strategy”
Hazards might include:
– Tornado
– Hazmat
– Earthquake
– Tsunami
Safety Strategies might include:
– Evacuate to shelter area
– Seal the room
– Drop, cover, and hold
– Get to high ground
Students are trained in:
– Appropriate Hazards and Safety Strategies
Adults and staff are trained in:
– Appropriate Hazards and Safety Strategies
– Accounting for students and adults
– Report injuries or problems using the Red Card/Green Card method.
Preparedness helps everyone respond with confidence. Additional information may be obtained from the Safety & Security pages of the website. Be sure to follow along with our School Safety Series to learn more!
