In honor of School Safety Week, we want to give extra attention to our Standard Response Protocols, including how campus administrators and Austin ISD police team up to keep your kids safe.
We have five types of SRPs that are activated in the case of a critical incident on our campuses: Hold, Secure, Lockdown, Evacuate and Shelter.
- We’ll outline each of the SRPs below and show examples of what communication may look like if your campus experiences a critical incident.
A Hold means staff and students to remain where they are and continue business as usual. A ‘Hold’ would usually be called to clear the hallways for a medical emergency, physical altercation etc.
- Example: Earlier today our campus was placed on a Hold for approximately 30 minutes because of a medical emergency. During a Hold, we keep the hallways clear and students continue their work as usual.
A Secure is used when there is a threat on the outside of the building. It means all staff and students to get inside, lock outside doors and conduct business as usual.
- Example: Today our campus went into Secure for approximately eight minutes while police investigated a report of suspicious activity in the community. During a Secure, all activities continue inside, but no one may leave or enter school buildings.
A lockdown means staff and students stay behind a locked door, shut the lights off, remain seated, remain quiet and out of sight in case of a threat inside the school.
- Example:[[School]is in Lockdown due to a report of an armed person on campus. Police are responding. During a lockdown, staff and students stay behind a locked door, turn off the lights and remain quiet and out of sight. Please do not come to campus. We will update you as soon as we know more information. We will update every 20 minutes.
An Evacuation means staff and students exit the building quickly, safely, and efficiently.
- Example: This morning, our school was evacuated for about 10 minutes because a fire alarm sounded. During an evacuation, all staff and students quickly and safely exit the building and meet at a predetermined location a safe distance away from the building.
A Shelter is used for emergencies such as a hazmat incident or bad weather (such as a tornado) and means staff and students seek shelter in a particular area of the building that is deemed safe. In a tornado this would be a portion of the building which is on the lowest floor, away from windows and doors.
- Example: The National Weather Service is predicting inclement weather and heavy rain throughout the day. Please be advised that our campuses have protocols in place to keep students and staff safe for weather events—see “Shelter” protocols. We are currently under a flash flood warning from the National Weather Service until 1:15 p.m.
The bottom line: We complete regular drills with our students and staff to prepare for any critical incidents. While we know some of these feel scary and we hope we’ll never have to do these SRPs, its essential for all staff and families to understand what happens.
Breakdown of our standard response protocols
In observance of School Safety Week, we want to put more attention on our standard response protocols (SRP), including how school administrators and Austin ISD Police collaborate to keep children safe.
We have five types of SRP that are activated in the event of a critical incident in our schools: Wait, Shelter, Emergency Closure, Evacuation and Shelter.
- Below we will describe each of the SRPs and give examples of what communications might look like if your school had a critical incident.
A wait It means that staff and students remain where they are and continue their regular activities. A “Hold” would normally be used to clear hallways for a medical emergency, physical altercation, etc.
- Example: Today our school was on Hold for approximately 30 minutes due to a medical emergency. During a Wait, we keep the hallways clear and students continue their work as usual.
A Safeguard It is used when there is something dangerous outside the building. It means that all staff and students enter the building, lock the exterior doors, and continue their regular activities.
- Example: Today our school was in Resguardo for approximately eight minutes while police investigated a report of suspicious activity in the community. During a Lockdown, all activities continue inside, but no one is allowed to leave or enter the school buildings.
A Closure Emergency means that staff and students stay behind a locked door, turn off the lights, remain seated, quiet, and out of sight in the event of a danger within the school.
- Example: The [escuela] is on lockdown is on lockdown due to a report of an armed person on campus. The police are responding. During a Lockdown, staff and students stay behind a locked door, turn off the lights, and remain quiet and out of sight. Please don’t come to school. We will let you know as soon as we have more information. We will give an update every 20 minutes.
An Evacuation It means staff and students leave the building quickly, safely and efficiently.
- Example: This morning, our school was evacuated for approximately 10 minutes because a fire alarm went off. During an Evacuation, all staff and students quickly and safely exit the building and gather at a predetermined location a safe distance from the building.
A Refuge It is used for emergencies such as a hazardous materials incident or bad weather (such as a tornado) and means that staff and students seek shelter in a certain area of the building that is considered safe. During a tornado, this would be a part of the building that is on the bottom floor, away from windows and doors.
- Example: The National Weather Service is predicting severe weather and heavy rain throughout the day. Please note that our schools implement protocols to keep students and staff safe during weather events; see the protocols for a “Shelter”. We currently have a flash flood warning from the National Weather Service until 1:15 p.m.
In conclusion: We do regular drills with our students and staff to prepare for any critical incident. While we know some of these can be scary, and we hope we never have to go through these SRPs, it is essential that all staff and families understand what would occur.
