Emergency Management

Emergency preparedness and safety are the mission of our division.  Our goal is to ensure that all students, staff and visitors are safe in our campuses and facilities.

Our prevention/mitigation measures include: 

• Security vestibules at our elementary schools and our newer secondary campuses.
• Screening visitors through the Raptor system and requiring that visitors be identified.
• Training staff and students to be observant and to report unidentified individuals and any safety concerns.
• Conducting safety and security audits, as required by the Texas Education Code and as needed to ensure a safe learning environment.
• A school safety and security committee that monitors compliance with local, state and federal mandates.

 Our preparedness efforts include: 

• Multi-hazard district and campus emergency operations plans.
• Drills in accordance with the standards of the Texas School Safety Center.
• Coordination with federal, state and local authorities and first responders.
• District and campus level emergency equipment and supplies.
• Mutual-aid, inter-local and other agreements to support comprehensive emergency preparedness.

 Our response elements include: 

• Implementation of Standard Response Protocol, e.g. Lockdown, Lockout, Evacuation, and Shelter-in-Place. 
• Use of Incident Command System (ICS).
• Effective public information/notifications systems.
• Collaboration with local first responders.  

Our recovery procedures include: 

• Plans for the emotional and physical health of students and staff after an incident.
• After-action reviews and corrective action plans, as needed.
• Continuity of operation planning to continue school/district functions during and after an incident.