An old saying states that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and in the case of school intrusions this can be potentially life-saving advice.
With recent public shootings, including the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary, in public consciousness awareness and concern over potential intruders in schools continues to grow.
This concern has prompted some schools to consider implementing additional procedures to increase safety.
A possible procedure is a live gunman drill, in which a school would enter lockdown and simulate the presence of a hostile intrude. A committee was recently formed in Hartselle to evaluate the feasibility of a live gunman drill.
As of right now Hartselle City Schools complies to state law which dictates 1-2 intruder drills a year and is partnered with Morgan County Emergency Management as well as the Hartselle Fire and Police Departments ,but the school is looking to also add a live gunman drill to that process.
Some have been concerned about exposing their children to a live gunman drill, although the development of such a drill is still in its early stages.
"I think everyone needs to be as updated as possible, but you have to move very slowly when you involve your students," said Jerry Reeves the director of school operations, "we aren't going to include students at this time."
The school is looking to streamline the process and apply it to faculty before deciding if it will include students in the procedure.
"We are not going to include students at this time," Reeves said.
This concern and desire for safety is also shared by Auburn City Schools and has been a motivator to adopt and implement strategies and training to help maintain a safe learning environment.
"We have implemented a number of strategies for dealing with somebody unauthorized being on the premises," said Dennos Veronese Auburn City Schools Assistant Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer.
The safety of students and staff is a very important subject to Veronese.
"I have four children in the system in four different schools, and I feel they're safe, as are all of our students" Veronese said, "I feel like I have been in Auburn my whole life, the quality of life is outstanding,"
Frequent staff training by the Auburn Police Department for intruder situations are a critical piece of Auburn City Schools plan to keep the quality of life high for its attendees with the most recent training session taking place Jan. 2 and lasting for several hours.
"We have a great partnership with Auburn Police," said Veronese
Training includes strategies for dealing with an unwanted or hostile presence in the school including the Alert, lockdown, inform, counter and evacuate, or A.L.i.C.E system.
The system is designed specifically for coping with an actively dangerous situation, such as a live gunman, and focuses on the idea of fight or flight. It is meant to get staff and students to safety through incapacitating the potential threat.
Auburn City School staff is actively trained and advised for how to respond to a gunman.
Staff put their training to use by applying it during drill situations.
"It's important to test these resources," Veronese said, "The drills are a mix of planned and random. You want to ensure that you are prepared."
The drills include lockdown scenarios, intrusion scenarios and what to do in the event of a shooting.
Unannounced drills are designed to test the functionality of the systems in place and the resources available to the schools in the event of the emergency, something that includes police presence because of the partnership between Auburn City Schools and APD.
"There is a drug dog on campus at the high school," Veronese said, "But during these drills the dogs are also capable of smelling explosives."
Veronese lauded the planning, attention to detail and dedication to training of Auburn City Schools noting that in recent tragedies gunman were methodical and well-armed placing a greater pressure on the faculty and staff of schools to be equally prepared.
"I am confident we have implemented effective plans for an intruder situation," Veronese said.
Through training, drills and awareness Auburn City Schools have laid down the framework to avoid or minimize potential, unpredictable tragedy.
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