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Emergency Response Protocols

When and Why Are Students and Staff Asked to Lockdown, Shelter-in-Place or Evacuate?

A school crisis can take a number of forms including an environmental event, such as a chemical spill or gas leak; a weather emergency, such as a tornado warning; or an intruder in or near the school. The nature of a school crisis dictates whether school officials will put in place a shelter-in-place, hold in place, evacuations, lockouts, lockdowns or any combination of two of these protocols as a means to ensure the safety and well-being of students and staff.

In the event of an emergency at your child's school, it is important for you to know and understand these terms:

Elmira City Schools work to ensure the safety of students and staff by developing actionable emergency plans for every Elmira school. Teachers, administrators, staff, and students are trained and routinely complete drills using these plans so they will be prepared in the event of an emergency.

What to Expect in an Emergency

The school administration’s priority is to handle the immediate emergency at hand, including engaging emergency responders such as law enforcement and first responders, if appropriate.

As soon as possible, school administration will send parent notification to phone or email contact info on file and to communicate the incident.
If it is necessary for students to leave the school and transfer to another location that is different from the school, school administration will send parent notification and school staff will follow an orderly plan to make sure that each child is released at a specified location on campus to a parent or approved adult who has been previously designated by the parent.

Parent Roles and Responsibilities During a School Emergency and Reunification After a School Emergency

In a school emergency, the first instinct as a parent is to pick up the telephone and start calling the school or rush to the school and get your child/children. The truth is, this only complicates matters from a safety and security standpoint.

Parents too close to an incident often hinder the rescue attempts of police and fire officials on the scene. The best action parents can take in an emergency is to stay close to their phone and e-mail and to monitor local radio and TV reports for regular updates and instructions. ECSD will be sending updates via website, Schoology, Schooltool, Class Dojo and other social media outlets.

Although your first reaction would be to call or rush to your child's school, please follow the tips listed below:

DO rely only on official communication from school or public safety officials.

DO listen for official information regarding reunification with your child.

DO NOT call or rush to your child's school. Your presence could interfere with emergency responders.

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT YOUR CHILD DURING AN EMERGENCY. Contacting your child may slow down the school’s efforts to get all students to safety if your child is not paying attention to instructions. Also, a ringing or vibrating cell phone, or a student talking, even in a whisper, may indicate to an intruder where your child and others are hiding.

PLEASE DO NOT CALL THE SCHOOLS FOR INFORMATION DURING AN EMERGENCY. In an emergency, staff members will be busy dealing with the safety of students and will not be able to answer the phones. For information during a crisis, please check the District's sources of communication.


Reunification Plans

Parents/guardians will be directed by school or public safety officials via TV/Radio, district website, Schoology, SchoolTool, Class Dojo or district social media pages, t their child's specific location. Students will be released ONLY to parents/guardians who are documented as emergency contacts and who present a picture ID such as a driver's license, military ID or passport. The reunification process can be time-consuming so parents are urged to be patient.

Under most emergency situations, parents/guardians are not allowed to enter the school facility until law enforcement agencies declare it safe to do so.

Emergency Communications

When there is an emergency, depending on the nature of the crisis and the resources available (i.e. phones, Internet), the District may communicate with one or more of the following methods:

In its communications, the District may provide any or all of the following information as it becomes available, depending on the nature of the emergency:

-What happened?
-Where and when did it happen?
-Who is in charge?
-Who was involved? Only general information will be provided. No specific names will be provided if a law enforcement investigation is involved and due to privacy reasons for students and staff members.
-How is the District responding?
-Has the situation been contained?
-Are students and staff safe? Is everyone accounted for?
-Are victims being treated and where?
-Information on dismissal, transportation, sheltering, and where and when parents may pick up students.
-Where to go for more information as it becomes available.

Need to Update Your Contact Information?

Ensure that your child's emergency contact information is accurate and current with the District.>>Click here to complete the digital change of information form.