Emergency & Crisis Vocabulary

The District may utilize one or more of the following responses to a crisis: early dismissal, school cancellation, sheltering, hold in-place, evacuation, lockout or lockdown. These terms, and other crisis-related terms, are defined as follows:
 
EARLY DISMISSAL - Similar to evacuation, early dismissal or “go home” is merely a procedure for getting students out of the building and united with their families or with some responsible surrogates who have been designated by the parents to care for the child. Returning students to their homes or other appropriate locations before the end of the school day. 

EMERGENCY - A situation, including but not limited to a disaster, which requires immediate action, occurs unpredictably, and poses a threat of injury or loss of life to students or school personnel or of severe damage to school property

EVACUATION - (“BUILDING EVACUATION”). Moving students for their protection from a school building to a predetermined outside or off-campus Safety Zone location in response to an emergency. All building occupants are required to exit the building and wait a safe distance from the building at the designated Safety Zone.

HOLD IN-PLACE - A Hold-In-Place procedure is used to limit movement of students and staff in hallways while dealing with short term emergencies.

IN-PLACE SHELTERING - (“IN-PLACE SHELTER”). The emergency response used in situations where it is necessary to have students/staff temporarily remain in their classrooms or work-areas during an emergency or medical emergency until things can be returned to normal or early dismissal can be arranged.

LOCK-DOWN - (“LOCK-DOWN”). This emergency response is to be used when walking through the building would endanger the health and safety of students/staff. In the event of a dangerous person or intruder, students and faculty are to remain in place. Classroom doors must be locked until the District’s administrators or law enforcement officials open the door.

LOCK-OUT - (“LOCK-OUT”). This emergency response is to be used when evacuating the building would endanger the health and safety of students/staff. In the event of a dangerous person on the school grounds, students and faculty are to remain inside the building. Building entry doors and windows should be locked to keep potential intruders out of the building.

RELOCATION CENTER - A location established for providing temporary shelter or care for persons displaced by an Emergency.

SAFETY ZONE - Predetermined locations either inside the school building (“sheltering”), outside the building on school property, or off campus, where students and faculty are to assemble in the event of an Emergency. Inside safety zones are the locations for in-place sheltering.

SCHOOL CANCELLATION - A determination by school officials that a school or schools should not be in session for one or more school days due to an emergency.

SHELTERING - (“SHELTER”). The emergency response of keeping students and staff in school buildings and providing them with shelter when it is deemed safer for students to remain inside rather than to return home or be evacuated (e.g., air pollution problems, chemical spills, radiological emergencies). Staff and students are held in a designated shelter location or common area inside the building, (a gymnasium, cafeteria or etc.), during an emergency or medical emergency until things can be returned to normal or dismissal can be arranged.

STUDENT RELEASE AREA - A predetermined location where parents, guardians, or authorized persons (pre-arranged surrogate) can pick up students during an emergency.