Alleghany County Public Schools

SCHOOL CRISIS, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND MEDICAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN

Each school will develop a written school crisis, emergency management and medical emergency response plan as defined below. The School Board will annually review each school’s plan and will provide copies of such plans to the chief law- enforcement officer, the fire chief, the chief emergency medical services official, and the emergency management official of the locality. The Department of Education and the Virginia Center for School Safety will provide technical assistance to the school division in the development of the plans. In developing these plans, schools may consult the model school crisis, emergency management, and medical emergency response plan developed by the Board of Education and the Virginia Center for School Safety.

The School Board designates the Director of Human Resources and Pupil Personnel, or his/her designee, as emergency manager.

Each school will annually conduct school safety audits as defined below. The results of such school safety audits will be made public within 90 days of completion. The School Board may withhold or limit the release of any security plans, walk-through checklists and specific vulnerability assessment components as provided in the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, Va. Code § 2.2-3705.2. The completed walk-through checklist will be made available upon request to the chief law-enforcement officer of the locality or his designee. Each school will maintain a copy of the school’s safety audit, which may exclude such security plans, walk-through checklists and vulnerability assessment components, within the office of the school principal and will make a copy of such report available for review upon written request.

Each school shall submit a copy of its school safety audit to the superintendent. The superintendent shall collate and submit all such school safety audits, in the prescribed format and manner of submission, to the Virginia Center for School Safety and shall make available upon request to the chief law-enforcement officer of the locality the results of such audits.

The superintendent will establish a school safety audit committee to include, if available, representatives of parents, teachers, local law-enforcement, emergency services agencies, local community services boards, and judicial and public safety personnel. The school safety audit committee will review the completed school safety audits and submit any plans, as needed, for improving school safety to the superintendent for submission to the School Board.

“School crisis, emergency management, and medical emergency response plan” means the essential procedures, operations, and assignments required to prevent, manage, and respond to a critical event or emergency, including natural disasters involving fire, flood, tornadoes, or other severe weather; loss or disruption of power, water, communications or shelter; bus or other accidents; medical emergencies, including cardiac arrest and other life threatening medical emergencies; student or staff member deaths; explosions; bomb threats; gun, knife or other weapons threats; spills or exposures to hazardous substances; the presence of unauthorized persons or trespassers; the loss, disappearance or kidnapping of a student; hostage situations; violence on school property or at school activities; incidents involving acts of terrorism; and other incidents posing a serious threat of harm to students, personnel, or facilities. The plan shall include a provision that the Department of Criminal Justice Services and the Virginia Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund shall be contacted immediately to deploy assistance in the event of an emergency as defined in the emergency response plan when there are victims as defined in § Va. Code § 19.2- 11.01, as well as current contact information for both.

“School safety audit” means a written assessment of the safety conditions in each public school to (1) identify and, if necessary, develop solutions for physical safety concerns, including building security issues and (2) identify and evaluate any patterns of student safety concerns occurring on school property or at school-sponsored events. Solutions and responses will include recommendations for structural adjustments, changes in school safety procedures, and revisions to the School Board’s standards for student conduct.

Each school will maintain records of regular safety, health and fire inspections that have been conducted and certified by local health and fire departments. The frequency of such inspections will be determined by the local school board in consultation

with the local health and fire departments. In addition, the school administration will:

1.      equip all exit doors with panic hardware as required by the Uniform Statewide Building Code ; and

2.      conduct fire drills at least once a week during the first month of school and at least once each month for the remainder of the school

term. No fire drills will be conducted during periods of mandatory testing required by the Board of Education.

Evacuation routes for

students shall be posted in each room. At least one simulated lockdown and crisis emergency evacuation activity should be conducted

early in the school year.

Each school will have contingency plans for emergencies that include staff certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), the Heimlich maneuver, and emergency first aid.

In addition, the school administration will ensure that the school has:

1.      written procedures to follow in emergencies such as fire, injury, illness, and violent or threatening behavior. The plan will be outlined in

the student handbook and discussed with staff and students during the first week of each school year;

2.      space for the proper care of students who become ill;

3.      a written procedure for responding to violent, disruptive or illegal activities by students on school property or during a school sponsored