Policy No. 3432
Emergencies

The district is committed to having current safe school plans and procedures in place to maximize safety for all students and staff. A commitment to safety enables teaching and learning. The District and its schools shall develop comprehensive all-hazard emergency operations plans that address prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery strategies.  

District and school plans shall: 

• Include required school safety policies and procedures;
• Address emergency mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery;
• Include provisions for assisting and communicating with students and staff, including those with special needs or disabilities;
• Include a family-student reunification plan, including procedures for communicating the reunification plan to staff, students, families, and emergency responders;
• Use the training guidance provided by the Washington emergency management division of the state military department in collaboration with the state school safety center in the office of the superintendent of public instruction, established under RCW 28A.300.630, and the school safety and student well-being advisory committee, established under RCW 28A.300.635;
• Require the building principal to be certified on the incident command system;
• Consider how school facilities may be used as a community asset in the event of a community-wide emergency and;
• Set guidelines for requesting city or county law enforcement agencies, local fire departments, emergency service providers, and county emergency management agencies to meet with the district and participate in safety-related drills.

To the extent the funds are available, the district will do the following annually;

• Review and update the safe school plans in collaboration with emergency response agencies;
• Conduct inventory of all hazardous materials;
• Identify all staff members who are trained on the national incident management system, trained on the incident command system, or certified on the incident command system;
• Identify school transportation procedures for evacuation, to include bus staging area, evacuation routes, communication systems, parent-student reunification sites, and secondary transportation agreements; and
• Provide information to all staff on the use of emergency supplies and alert procedures; 

Drills:
Drills are an essential component of safety planning. Drills teach students and staff basic functional responses to potential threats and hazards. The four functional responses are adaptable and can be applied to a variety of situations.  Additionally, some threats or hazards may require the use of more than one basic functional response. Therefore, each school in the district will conduct at least one safety-related drill per month, including summer months when school is in session for students.  Drill planning and implementation shall consider and accommodate the needs of all students.

Basic Function Drills
The basic functional responses include shelter-in-place, lockdown, evacuations, and earthquakes (drop-cover-hold on):

Shelter-in-Place
Shelter-in-place is designed to limit the exposure of students and staff to hazardous materials, such as chemical, biological, or radiological contaminants that are released into the environment by isolating the inside environment from the outside.  Staff and students will receive instruction so that they will be able to remain inside and take the steps necessary to eliminate or minimize the health and safety hazard.

Lockdown
Lockdowns are meant to isolate students and staff from threats of violence, such as suspicious trespassers, armed intruders, and other threats that may occur in a school or in the vicinity of a school.  Staff and students will receive instruction so that in the event of the breach of security of a school building or campus, staff, students and visitors will be able to take positions in secure enclosures.  Lockdown drills will not include live simulations of or reenactments of active shooter scenarios that are not trauma-informed and age and developmentally appropriate.

Evacuations
When an emergency within a school or its surrounding area necessitates evacuation and/or total or partial closure of the schools within the district, staff will be responsible for aiding in the safe evacuation of the students within the endangered school or its surrounding area.  Staff and students will receive instruction so that in the event the school or district needs to be evacuated due to threats, such as fires, oil train spills, earthquakes, etc. They will be able to leave the building in the shortest time possible and take the safest route possible to a designated reunification site.

Earthquakes: Drop-Cover-Hold On
The board recognizes the importance of protecting staff, students and facilities in the event of an earthquake. Facilities shall be designed and maintained in a manner that recognizes the potential danger from such an occurrence. Likewise, staff must be prepared to take necessary action to protect students and staff from harm.

“Drop – cover – hold on” is the basic functional earthquake response. The superintendent or designee will establish guidelines and the action for building principals to take should an earthquake occur while school is in session.

Additional Safety-Related Preparation
In addition to the above four functional response drills, the district shall, at a minimum, also develop response plans for the following:

Yelm Community Schools believes that safety preparedness is an essential part of the school emergency plan so that students and staff are able to act to maximize safety in the event of a school emergency. While not required, all district staff receive training to respond and to protect students and themselves in the event of an armed intruder or active shooter emergency.

Safety planning includes a continuum of activities for students and staff, and combines classroom learning and practice drills. All learning and drills are tailored to meet the unique needs of schools and their students and staff. Regardless of location, training consists of the same core elements of ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) training. All safety preparedness is designed to minimize the potential for traumatic harm while participating in the safety exercises.

Staff and student ALICE preparation is completed through classroom instruction and includes an overview of ALICE activities and expectations; introduction of hypothetical situations; education about what to do and why; and tabletop exercises. Classroom instruction also provides participants with the opportunity to review the response options, ask questions, and address anxieties. It is important to note that the district does not engage students in live simulations of active shooter situations.

Pandemic/Epidemic
The board recognizes that a pandemic outbreak is a serious threat that could affect students, staff and the community. The superintendent or a designee will serve as a liaison between the school district and local health officials. The district liaison, in consultation with local health officials, will ensure that a pandemic/epidemic plan exists in the district and establish procedures to provide for staff and student safety during such an emergency.     

When an emergency within a school or its surrounding area necessitates evacuation and/or total or partial closure of the schools within the district, staff will be responsible for aiding in the safe evacuation of the students within the endangered school or its surrounding area.

Bomb Threats
The superintendent will establish procedures for action in the event that any threat is received toward the school by telephone, letter, orally or by other means.

Emergency School Closure or Evacuation (Modified Shelter-in-Place)
When weather conditions or other circumstances make it unsafe to operate schools, the superintendent or designee is directed to determine whether schools should be started late, closed for the day or transportation will be provided only on emergency routes.  Those decisions will be communicated through community media resources pursuant to a plan developed by the superintendent or designee.

The superintendent will establish procedures for the emergency closure of a building or department.

All safety plans and drill shall include protocols for both internal and external communications, as well as procedures for drill documentation.  Evacuation plans shall also include reunification plans. Schools shall document the dates and time of such drills. Each school will maintain the time and type of drill in the school office.                                                                                                                   

Cross References:                       Board Policy 4310         District Relationships with Law Enforcement, DSHS and the Health Department
Legal References:                           RCW 19.27.110         International Fire Code – Administration and Enforcement by Counties, other political subdivisions and municipal counties
                                                       RCW 28A.320.125         Safe school plans – Requirements – Duties of school districts, schools,– Drills – Rules – First responder agencies

Management Resources:                                                   OSPI School Safety Planning Manual (June 2008)     

                                           Policy News, Aug. 2008         School Safety Plans
                                            Policy News, Oct. 2006         Pandemic Flu Planning for School Districts
                                            Policy News, Feb. 1999         Fire drills required monthly
                          Policy and Legal News, June 2013         Emergencies Policy Updated
                                        PLN, February 2021            

ADOPTED: 04/22/1999
REVISED: 12/14/06; 11/25/08; 08/22/13; 12/15/2022

Procedure No. 3432P Emergencies

Overview
The District and its schools will develop comprehensive all-hazard emergency operations plans that address prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery strategies. Plans will be revisited annually and revised if necessary.

In the event of an emergency:

• The report of an emergency will be directed to the superintendent’s office;
• If the nature of the emergency calls for immediate action on the part of a principal, he/she will take necessary action and report such action to the superintendent’s office;
• The superintendent’s office will contact those departments and/or schools who must assist in the emergency action, and
• When appropriate the superintendent’s office will coordinate with the local police department and the county department of emergency services. 

Drills
Drills are essential and are held to familiarize the occupants of a building with the process, and procedures so that in case of emergency there will be no hesitation or confusion. Each school in the District will hold at least one safety-related drill per month to teach students and staff the basic functional responses to potential threats and hazards: evacuation, lockdown, shelter-in-place, and drop-cover-hold on. All persons in the building must take part in the drills. District schools may hold unplanned drills.

Schools will identify those drills that they intend to practice more than one time. The basic functional responses are adaptable and can be applied to a variety of situations. In responding to real threats or hazards, more than one response may be required. (An earthquake, for example, may require both a drop-cover-hold-on response followed by an evacuation.)

The sounding of an alarm for the purpose of a drill is an authority possessed solely by the principal or authorized designee. The principal will designate an alternate to act in the principal’s absence. In the event of a real emergency, the person witnessing the situation may sound the alarm; the school office must be immediately notified of the emergency.

Each school in the District will document the date, time, and type of drill, and maintain the documentation in the district management system. In addition to required monthly drills, schools are encouraged to conduct one tabletop exercise, one functional exercise, and two full-scale exercises within a four-year period.

Each school in the District is distinct. It is incumbent upon the principal of each school to develop, adapt, and modify safety planning requirements, processes, and drills to the particular needs of the school. The school principal will ensure that all staff and students are trained and prepared for a wide range of potential emergency situations. Principals are encouraged to use a variety of options and opportunities to facilitate the training process. Each school will develop plans to teach students crisis response strategies and ensure that adults, including First Responders, are trained to follow established protocols.

The District is committed to supporting the needs of all students in the event of an emergency, including those with special needs and disabilities, and those whose first language is other than English. School emergency planning will consider the needs of these students throughout the four phases of crisis management and work to identify students’ needs for accommodations and modifications related to safety planning. 

Basic Responses and Drills

Evacuation:
In an emergency, it may be necessary to evacuate students from a school.  An evacuation is a functional response taken to move students and staff from one place to another quickly. The primary objective of an evacuation is to ensure that all staff, students, and visitors can quickly move away from the threat. Evacuation examples include responding to fire, bomb threat, after an earthquake, or internal gas leak.

Principals must prepare an evacuation plan for their school and carry out a practical evacuation exercise at least once a year. The needs for each school will be different, no common plan can be used to prepare all schools.  Principals are encouraged to collaborate with local fire and law enforcement when making plans to evacuate their school.

In preparing for possible evacuations, principals should identify three types of evacuation locations:

• On-site evacuation location within the school (auditorium, gym, cafeteria, etc.);
• On-site evacuation location outside of the building (playground, football field, parking lot, etc.);
• Off-site evacuation location at a separate facility, as well as a possible alternate location;

When planning for an evacuation, principals should consider:

• The safe movement of students, staff, and visitors to designated assembly areas; 
• The evacuation of students who are not with a teacher or staff member;
• Alternate evacuation routes and assembly locations in the event that the primary route or assembly area is unsafe;
• The evacuation of individuals with disabilities and others with access and functional needs, such as language, transportation, or medical needs.

The principal will instruct staff including teachers, office staff, cooks, custodians, aides, and bus drivers as to their respective responsibilities in an evacuation exercise. 

The principal will be responsible for organizing and conducting such emergency evacuation drills as are necessary and will objectively evaluate the activity following each such drill. In the absence of the principal, staff should be able to conduct all aspects of the evacuation procedure. 

Any district school that lies in mapped [lahar/tsunami] zones must plan with local First Responders and must implement one walking evacuation drill per year.

Lockdown/ Lockout:
A Lockdown is a functional response taken to secure interior portions of school buildings and grounds during incidents that pose an immediate threat of violence in or around the school. The primary objective is to ensure all school students, staff, and visitors are quickly secured away from the immediate danger, such as armed intruders, violent behaviors, suspicious trespassers, on-campus shootings, bomb threat, sniper, or nearby police activity. Lockdown drills will not include live simulations or or reenactments of active shooter scenarios that are not trauma-informed and age and developmentally appropriate.

A Full Lockdown is initiated when hallways need to be cleared. Movement throughout building is stopped until an all-clear signal is given.

A Modified Lockdown is typically used when events in the vicinity of the school may pose a threat. Movement within the building may continue as normal or may be adapted based on the situation.

A Lockout is initiated to secure school buildings and grounds during incidents that pose a threat or hazard outside of the school building.  Lockout uses the security of the physical facility to act as protection; it brings students inside the school when that is deemed safer than being outside.

Shelter-in-Place / Sheltering:
Shelter-in-place means to take immediate shelter where you are and isolate your inside environment from the outside environment. Generally, shelter-in-place lasts for just a few hours. Shelter-in-place is initiated because it is safer inside the building or a room than outside. It is used to protect students and staff from chemical, radiological, or biological contaminants that have been released into the environment.  

Sheltering is similar to shelter-in-place, in that it is initiated because it is safer inside the building than outside. When sheltering, action is taken to move students, staff, and visitors indoors quickly. Sheltering may last for an extended period of time. For severe weather, depending on the type and/or threat level, staff may need to move the affected individuals to rooms without windows or to rooms that can be sealed as a weather shelter.

In planning for both shelter-in-place and for sheltering, the school planning team should consider 

• Supplies needed to seal a room against hazardous materials;
• Supplies needed to provide for the basic needs of students and staff (e.g., water; sanitary needs);
• The needs of individuals with disabilities and others who have access or functional needs, such as students needing regular administration of medication, durable medical equipment, or personal assistant services; and
• The possible need for and integration of “safe rooms” for protection against extreme weather hazards in order to provide immediate life-safety protection when evacuation is not an option.

Earthquake / Drop – Cover – Hold-on:
The threat of an earthquake in Washington is ever-present. The standard functional response to an earthquake is: Drop – Cover – Hold-on. When an earthquake occurs, the danger can persist for some time.

Each school principal in consultation with staff is required to prepare a plan and conduct an emergency drop-cover-hold-on earthquake drill annually. Building staff are encouraged to contact the District office and the county emergency service department for technical assistance.

Preparation
The principal and building staff will be responsible for conducting an annual inspection of the building early in the school year for the purpose of identifying potential hazards in the event of an earthquake, e.g., securing all bookcases to wall to prevent collapse. Those hazards that cannot be corrected by building level personnel will be corrected by District maintenance personnel as soon as resources permit.

Information to Families
Families should be advised that if there is an earthquake while children are on their way to school, they should “duck and cover away from power lines, buildings, and trees.” Once the earthquake has stopped, they should proceed to school. If the quake occurs on their way home, after protecting themselves until the quake stops, they should proceed to their home.

Families should also be advised not to remove a child from the school grounds unless they have first checked with school officials, as building staff might think the student is missing and needs help.

Families should further be advised to avoid calling the school, as school staff will need to use the phones, if the phones are functioning. Staff will notify parents of injured children first. Schools will train staff to help injured children, as possible, until other medical assistance arrives.

Following an earthquake drill or actual event, staff members will account for all students and staff before re-entry. The principal must determine, on the basis of thorough inspection of both structures and utility conduits, that the facility is safe. No students or staff will be dismissed until procedures have been approved by the superintendent’s office if district-wide communications are in operation. ​

Instructions - During Drill or Earthquake
​In classrooms: All persons, including the teacher, other staff, and students should get under a desk or table, face away from windows, face away from bookshelves, face away from heavy objects that may fall, crouch on knees close to ground, place head close to knees, cover side of head with elbows and clasp hands firmly behind neck, close eyes tightly, and remain in place until instructed otherwise or until the “all clear” signal is given.

In gymnasiums or assembly areas: all persons should exit such facilities as expeditiously as possible and move to designated areas.On stairways: all persons should move to the interior wall and “duck and cover.” If the stairway is exterior to the building, all persons should evacuate to designated areas.

If outdoors: all persons should move to designated areas, as far away as possible from buildings, poles, wires, and other elevated objects. All persons should lie down or crouch low to the ground, covering their heads. All persons should be aware of encroaching danger that may demand further movement.

After the Shaking Stops:
Expect aftershocks.

The principal and custodian should inspect facilities as soon as it appears safe to do so, and before instructing staff and students to evacuate. Classes should be evacuated through exits to a safe area. Students should move away from buildings and remain there until given further instructions. One or more responsible staff members or students may be posted to prevent re-entry. 

Following the evacuation, the principal should:

• Check for injuries among students and staff (do not attempt to move seriously injured persons unless they are in immediate danger of further injury);
• Check for fires or fire hazards;
• Check utility lines and appliances for damage. If gas leaks exist, shut off the main gas valves and shut off electrical power if there is damage to the wiring (do not use matches, lighters, or open flame appliances until you are sure no gas leaks exist, and do not operate electrical switches or appliances if gas leaks are suspected);
• Instruct students not to touch power lines or objects touched by the wires (all wires should be treated as live);
• Clean up spilled medicines, drugs, chemicals, and other potentially harmful materials immediately;
• Do not eat or drink anything from open containers near shattered glass (liquids may be strained through a clean handkerchief or cloth if danger of glass contamination exists);
• Check the chimney over its entire length for cracks and damage, particularly in the attic and at the roof line (unnoticed damage could lead to a fire);
• Check closets and storage shelf areas (open closet and cupboard doors carefully and watch for objects falling from shelves);
• Keep the streets clear for emergency vehicles;
• Be prepared for “after-shocks;”
• Respond to requests for help from police, fire department and civil defense, but do not go into damaged areas unless your help has been requested; and
• Plan for student/staff needs during the time that may elapse before assistance arrives (e.g. four to eight hours).

Schools which lie in mapped lahar or tsunami zones must plan for and implement one walking evacuation drill per year.

The four basic functional responses are adaptable and can be applied to a variety of situations. Some threats or hazards may require the use of more than one basic functional response.

Preparation and Response to Specific Emergencies

Fire:
Fire drills are evacuation drills held to familiarize the occupants of a building with the signals, evacuation routine, and exits so that in case of a fire emergency there will be no hesitation or confusion in leaving the building. These drills are for the safety of all persons involved, and each person must realize that the success of the drill is dependent upon his/her actions and cooperation. Therefore: 

• All persons in the building must take part in the fire drill; 
• Every fire alarm should be considered as a warning of an actual fire;
• An accidental or otherwise unplanned fire alarm will be considered a real event and not counted as a drill.

Instructions should be given to all students during the first week of school in September. It is particularly important that kindergarten children, representing the one large group of children new to the schools, be given instructions in fire evacuation drill procedures for the building. 

Pandemic/Epidemic
If anyone within the school is discovered or suspected to have a communicable disease that may result in an epidemic/pandemic that person will be immediately quarantined pending further medical examination. Local health officials will be notified immediately.

Any student or staff member found to be infected with a communicable disease that bears risk of pandemic/epidemic will not be allowed to attend school until medical clearance is provided by the individual’s primary care physician or other medical personnel indicating that the risk of that individual transmitting the disease no longer exists. 

In the event of prolonged school closings and/or extended absences by staff or students as the result of a pandemic (or other catastrophes) the superintendent will develop a pandemic/epidemic emergency plan that includes at a minimum: 

• The chain of command for the emergency plan, and the individuals responsible for specific duties such as quarantine;
• The specific steps the district will take to stop the spread of the disease;
• The process for identifying sick students;
• The transportation plan for sick students; 
• Disease containment measures for the district, including possible required use of personal protective equipment and of social distancing;
• A continuing education plan for students, such a plan for remote learning including but not limited to teaching via the internet, providing students with learning packets, assignments via mail, the school district’s web resources, etc.; 
• Procedures for dealing with student online safety and privacy;  
• A continuity of operations plan (COOP) for central office functions including employee leave, pay, and benefits during a pandemic; and 
• An ongoing communication plan for staff, students, and families.

Bomb Threats:
Most bomb threat messages are very brief. When possible, every effort should be made to obtain detailed information from the caller such as: exact location of the bomb, time set for detonation, description of the bomb, and type of explosive used. Details such as: time of call, exact words used, sex, estimated age, identifiable accent, voice description of caller and identifiable background noise should also be noted.

Evacuation Decision
The principal should notify the District office immediately. The principal should be ready to provide specific information regarding the “threatening call” and indicate if the building(s) will be evacuated and/or searched. 

The decision of whether or not to evacuate and the manner of evacuation depends on the circumstances of each call. Every call should be handled individually and evaluated separately. If there is, doubt as to what action to take, the safety of students and staff must be paramount.

If the principal determines the threat is a hoax, he/she will conduct a quiet search of the building. No classes will be dismissed. A written report should be submitted to the superintendent. 

If the principal determines that the message is a dangerous threat, law enforcement officers and the District office should be contacted. Immediate evacuation of the facility should be initiated as delineated in the site-specific comprehensive safety plan. Evacuation procedures should be modified as needed to ensure the safest possible routes are identified and followed. 

Students and staff to be evacuated from the area should be moved to a minimum safe distance as determined by law enforcement personnel. Teaching staff should remain with their classes until such time as the danger of explosion is past. Search procedures should be conducted under the direction of law enforcement officers. A written report should be submitted to the superintendent.

Those evacuated from the area should be moved to a minimum of 300 feet from the point of possible explosion. Power, gas, and fuel lines leading to a danger area should be shut off as soon as practical. All flammable liquids and materials should be removed from the surrounding area as well as any portable materials of value.

Search without Evacuation
If the preliminary decision is to search the building without evacuating the students, the principal should enlist the voluntary aid of the staff to conduct a cursory search of the building. Particular attention should be paid to those areas that are accessible to the public, such as hallways, stairways and stairwells, restrooms, unlocked lockers, unlocked unused classrooms, closets, and the like. A search should also be made on the outside of the building on low window ledges, window wells, and the base of all outside walls. 

Search with Evacuation 
If the decision is to evacuate staff and students, the principal should have the team conduct a more thorough search of the entire building. When a threat appears to be “dangerous,” the principal should enlist the aid of the local police and fire department in conducting the search. All searchers should vacate the building for a short period of time when the alleged bomb is to detonate. After the search has been made and the danger period is over, the students may then return to their classrooms for resumption of normal activities. 

Search with Evacuation during Valid Bomb Threats 
When the bomb threat is judged to be valid, the building should be cleared immediately of all personnel so that the police can assume the responsibility of conducting the search. A staff member should be stationed at each entrance to prevent unauthorized persons from returning to the building until the area is declared safe.

What to Look for 
All unidentified packages found during bomb searches should be considered dangerous and left untouched, to be examined and identified by a qualified bomb expert. Bombs come in many shapes and sizes. Some are disguised, while others may be as crude as sticks of dynamite held together with twine or tape. One must be suspicious of any package that cannot be identified. Example: a brown paper package found ticking in an unlocked locker should always be considered dangerous. 

Disposition of Suspected Bombs 
In the event of the discovery of a suspected bomb, the following steps will be taken:

• Do not touch or attempt to move the package in any manner.
• Avoid moving any article or articles that seem to be connected with the bomb in any way that could be a triggering mechanism. Bombs have been set off by turning on a light switch or lifting a telephone receiver;
• Clear the danger area of all occupants; and
• Assign staff at entrances to prevent others from entering.

Additional Safety-Related Preparation
Yelm Community Schools believes that safety preparedness is an essential part of the school emergency plan so that students and staff are able to act to maximize safety in the event of a school emergency. While not required, all district staff receive training to respond and to protect students and themselves in the event of an armed intruder or active shooter emergency.

Safety planning includes a continuum of activities for students and staff, and combines classroom learning and practice drills. All learning and drills are tailored to meet the unique needs of schools and their students and staff. Regardless of location, training consists of the same core elements of ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) training. All safety preparedness is designed to minimize the potential for traumatic harm while participating in the safety exercises.

Staff and student ALICE preparation is completed through classroom instruction and includes an overview of ALICE activities and expectations; introduction of hypothetical situations; education about what to do and why; and  tabletop exercises. Classroom instruction also provides participants with the opportunity to review the response options, ask questions, and address anxieties. It is important to note that the district does not engage students in live simulations of active shooter situations.

What is ALICE training? ALICE training is an interactive and on-demand training. The courses provide foundational information on the communication strategies of ALICE:

A - Alert
L - enhanced lockdown
I - Inform provide real-time information
C - Counter
E - Evacuate the area

Each course includes vital resources and lesson plans for all staff, with additional resources for students, including instruction and specific resources for educators of students with special needs.

These courses are age- and ability-appropriate active shooter response trainings with a trauma-informed approach embeded. All employees are ALICE certified and information is flexible to job assignment, inclusive of all audiences, and continuously available for employee review. The ALICE curriculum is curated by experts and aligned with NASP and SAMHSA recommended practices. There is a course library that can further help prepare students and staff to respond at school and beyond. However, students are not engaged in active shooter live scenarios.

Additional Emergency and Drill Planning Considerations

Communications:
The delivery of timely and accurate information before, during, and after an incident is a critical component of crisis and emergency management. Ensuring that students, staff members, parents, local response agencies, the media, and the community have information is the joint responsibility of the school and the District Chief Information officer.

Planning for communication and coordination will consider both internal communication and external communication with stakeholders during emergencies and disasters. Planning will also consider the communication of emergency protocols before an emergency and communication after an emergency.

If possible, District and school communications system will work to integrate into the local disaster and response law enforcement communication networks (e.g., fire department and law enforcement staff). The goal of integrated communications is to:

• Ensure relevant staff members can operate communications equipment;
• Communicate with students, families, and the broader community before, during, and after an emergency;
• Account for technology barriers faced by students, staff, parents, and guardians;
• Effectively address language access barriers faced by students, staff, parents, and guardians;
• Allow the Chief Information Officer to respond in a timely manner to media inquiries;
• Communicate to the community; and 
• Ensure effective communication with individuals with disabilities and others with access and functional needs (e.g., coordinating with First Responders and local emergency managers to provide sign language interpreters for use during press conferences, publishing only accessible documents, ensuring information on websites is accessible).

Accounting for All Persons:
The planning team should consider the following when developing plans to account for all persons, including students, staff, and visitors:

• Who is in attendance at the school site;
• Who is in attendance at the assembly area;
• Actions to be taken when a student, staff member, or guest cannot be located;
• The process for reporting to the assembly supervisor; and
• How and when students will be dismissed or released.

Reunification and Student Release: 
Planning how students will be reunited with their families or guardians is a critical component of emergency planning. Reunification is part of the Incident Command System. A comprehensive emergency plan needs to include procedures to accomplish the main priority of safety planning, which is to ensure the safety of the students to every extent possible.

There are a wide variety of emergency situations that might require student/parent reunification. Reunification may be needed if the school is evacuated or closed as a result of a hazardous materials transportation accident, fire, natural gas leak, flooding, earthquake, tsunami, school violence, bomb threat, terrorist attack or other local hazard.

As feasible, the planning team will consider the following when developing goals, objectives, and courses of action:

• The location of the reunification site;
• The methods used to inform families and guardians about the reunification process in advance; 
• Verification that an adult is authorized to take custody of a student;
• The check-in process between the authorized adult and student at the reunion areas;
• Assurances that students do not leave on their own;
• Privacy protection of students and parents from the media;
• Methods to reduce confusion during the reunification process;
• Frequent updates for families;
• Recognition of technology barriers faced by students, staff, parents, and guardians; and
• Effective resources to address language access barriers faced by students, staff, parents, and guardians.

 ADOPTED: 10/22/1998
REVISED: 04/22/99; 12/14/2006; 11/25/08; 08/22/13, 12/15/2022