Nineteen years after Columbine, six years after Sandy Hook, six months after Stoneman Douglas, Sharon Springs Central School is revising its active shooter policy in case the unthinkable ever becomes…thinkable.
Instead of locking their classroom doors and then sheltering in place, teachers and staff are being given permission to gather up their students and evacuate if that looks like the best option.
In a worst-worst case scenario, they’re also drilling on what to do if an armed intruder enters their room—even if it means going on the offensive.
“Every situation is different,” said Superintendent Pat Green. “It’s tough to come up with a one size fits all answer…We’re a good 18-20 minutes away from any help from law enforcement. This lets the people who are in the room make the decisions.”
Mr. Green began revamping SSCS’s policies—it’s still a work in progress—after attending an ALICE—Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate—training hosted by the Canajoharie Police Department and meeting with Schoharie County Undersheriff Duane Tillapaugh and Deputy Zach Reinhart, who’s trained as a school resource officer.
While in the past, teachers were taught to lock their doors and shelter in place, the new policy gives them more tools—the first zip ties and wedges that make classroom doors nearly impossible to open.
“We’ve drilled this,” Mr. Green said. “It’s simple, but very effective.”
Just as importantly, using the iPads—which they’ve been instructed to keep with them at all times—teachers will have immediate access to emails alerting them to where the intruder is in the building-- information available from security cameras in the hallways that can also immediately be shared with law enforcement.
If teachers know the intruder’s on the third floor, for example, Mr. Green said, teachers in the elementary wing may make the decision to evacuate.
For years after Columbine, law enforcement was reluctant to suggest evacuation; with most gun men acting alone since then, that thinking has changed.
“It’s not something I ever thought I’d be thinking about and weighing the pros and cons on,” Mr. Green said. “It’s the world we live in today. We hope it’ll never happen here, but we need to be prepared. And yes, it’s a grisly thought.”
And even that’s a balancing act.
Though at first Mr. Green thought the new policy might include using the school’s PA system to broadcast exactly where in the building the intruder was, that’s on hold at least for now so younger students in particular aren’t unnecessarily traumatized.
SSCS is fortunate in that it’s a small school that knows its students well, Mr. Green said, and encourages everyone—student included—to speak up.
With the older students, he said, he stresses safety is everyone’s responsibility; with the younger, he stresses how important it is that they listen to their teachers in language they can understand.
We talk about moths and how they’re drawn to light,” he said. “In this case, they’re the moths. They need to be quiet…”
Additionally, all drills are now being announced as drills; no longer will anyone have to wonder if “this is the real thing.”
Finally, as part of ALICE, teachers and students are also being given permission to “counter” intruders—to distract, swarm or go on the attack if there are no reasonable alternatives left.
“I’ve been asked in faculty meetings, ‘What do we do if the gunshots are on the other side of the building. Just sit there?’ and no, it doesn’t make sense. We’re giving them other options. We want them to use their best judgment.”