Lock Down Drill
Dear Parents and Guardians,
The safety and security of our students and staff are a priority for GCSD. We have been implementing several measures as part of a comprehensive plan to ensure our school remains a safe place for our students to learn.
Three of the procedures our schools use are "Hold,“ Secure,” and “Lockdown.”
- “Hold" is an action taken to restrict access within the school to deal with a student/parent/community situation that is not life-threatening to the school.
- "Secure” is an action taken to restrict access to the school in response to a safety concern external to the school. (While we are in "lockout" most of the day already, when we officially go into this mode, staff cannot enter the exit building.)
- “Lockdown” is a procedure to conceal students in a secure location in response to an act or safety concern inside the school.
- During a lockdown, classroom doors are locked, and students remain inside the room until instructed by the teacher to resume their activities. In addition, access to the building is restricted while the school is in lockdown.
Just as we prepare our students to respond to a fire drill properly, they must also be aware of the proper response during a “Lockdown.” We should treat these procedures with the same importance as fire drills. Please be assured that staff at our school will discuss the importance of these procedures with students. After the drill, we will remind them that it was only a practice and there was no danger. Please take the time to speak with your child(ren) about these procedures and reinforce their importance. We practice these procedures to ensure our school remains a safe place for teaching and learning.
This message informs you that we are currently in a Lockdown DRILL. Once we have completed the drill, I will send another message informing parents we are all clear.
Don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about hold-and-secure and lockdown procedures.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Thank you,