Keeping our schools safe and secure creates complex challenges. No single action by itself can make our schools safe, so protecting students and staff is a tremendous responsibility that requires a comprehensive approach. The training that students and staff receive about the district’s safety processes, plans, technologies and procedures empowers them to take effective action in emergencies.

The Littleton Public Schools Security Video is being shown to all current LPS 6-12 graders sometime before March, 2020. The nine-minute video explains the Five Security Protocols (Secured Perimeter, Shelter in Place, Evacuation, Room Clear and Lockdown) that are used by the district to manage situations that may occur in or around a school building while school is in session. It complements and helps reinforce the training students have been receiving and the drills LPS students have been practicing for years.

* For Spanish, start the video, click on the cc box at the bottom right, and select Spanish.
(* Para ver el video en español, empiecen el video, hagan click en las letras “cc” a la derecha de la parte baja y elijan “Spanish”.)

The protocols were developed by combining expertise from the education community, law enforcement and the security industry with the end result being a coordinated approach that helps school administrators make effective use of proven security practices for K-12 settings. The Partner Alliance for Safer Schools as well as United States Homeland Security recommend these safety protocols for schools.

Depending on the circumstances, a protocol may be implemented without any school functions being disrupted, while others may necessitate changes in dismissal times and might involve local emergency services. We are prepared to care for your children in all of these situations. When we work together, we are all safer.

1. A SECURED PERIMETER is initiated when the threat is outside the building. Secured Perimeters are often implemented due to emergency situations that take place in the neighborhood close to the schools. Examples that may prompt a Secure Perimeter being called include a bank robbery near a school, a police activity or a dangerous animal in the area. 
2. A SHELTER IN PLACE is initiated in situations that may require staff and students in the interest of safety to shelter in their classrooms or work areas. SHELTER IN PLACE is stricter than a SECURED PERIMETER since staff and students are not allowed to move within the building and are sheltering in classrooms and work areas. A SHELTER IN PLACE would be used in situations where there is a possibility that an area emergency may escalate and having students and staff sheltered behind locked doors may be paramount to safety and order. 
3. An EVACUATION is used to get students and staff out of the building by a route designed to avoid contact with a potential threat, such as a suspicious package, a threatening person in a specific confined area, a bomb threat, or a hazardous material spill. An EVACUATION protects staff and students from a threat where the exact location is known in the building. 
4. A ROOM CLEAR is issued by the teacher or supervising adult; it is used to send students away from a potential threat, such as a student acting out in a violent manner. It is also used when the teacher must remain in the dangerous situation but can send students to a designated safe area.
5. A LOCKDOWN is used when there is an active threat on the campus. Students and staff must find immediate shelter inside the nearest classroom as quickly as possible. Lock the door and turn out the lights. Stay out of the line of sight, and gather in a space so someone in the hallway couldn’t see you when looking through a doorway. Huddle behind large items for extra protection, and consider barricading the doorway if it can be done quickly. Be very quiet. Be prepared to move quickly. Don’t open the door for anyone - stay until law enforcement comes to your classroom and leads you to safety.