NB ALICE Training
NB ALICE Training
Posted on 10/28/2022
October 28, 2022
Dear North Branch Families:
On January 12, 2022, the North Branch Area Schools Safety Committee held its first meeting with the sole objective to comprehensively review the district-wide safety plan. The committee’s goal was to take a thoughtful and measured approach based on extensive research and best practices to recommend short and long-term safety measures to the North Branch Board of Education. The committee of 20+ individuals was composed of school administrators, teachers, and support staff from each building as well as local law enforcement and community members.
The committee met for the second time on February 9, 2022, and discussed the benefits of switching to ALICE Training vs. continuing with the current safety protocols. The ALICE acronym stands for ALERT, LOCKDOWN, INFORM, COUNTER, and EVACUATE:
Alert – Alert is your first notification of danger. Maintain good situational awareness to overcome normalcy bias and ensure the best response to a critical incident or violent intruder.
Lockdown – Barricade the room.
Inform – Communicate the violent intruder’s location and direction in real-time. To do this, pass on real-time information using any means necessary. Examples are video surveillance, 911 calls and PA announcements.
Counter – Not to be confused with fighting, this step involves creating noise, movement, distance and distraction. Its intent is to reduce the shooter’s ability to shoot accurately.
Evacuate – Safe and strategic evacuation techniques get people out of harm’s way. Understand how your current environment impacts your ability to evacuate and discover the safest ways to do so.
Benefits of utilizing ALICE training include the following in the very unlikely event we have an intruder or active shooter situation in one of our buildings:
- Multi-option response
- Proactive vs. Passive actions
- Not as predictable for an assailant
- Tailored training for all schools staff
Two committee members attended an ALICE Training session on February 18th and I shared information with the North Branch Board of Education on February 28th. Committee members voted unanimously to approve ALICE Training for all district employees at its March 9th Safety Committee meeting, and the North Branch Board of Education supported this recommendation during its March 14th board meeting. All administrators, teachers, and support staff are now certified in ALICE training after undergoing a full day of training on August 16th as part of our District Provided Professional Development Day. We will continue to train new employees primarily through on-line eLearning Courses generously funded for all county schools by the Lapeer County ISD. A special thanks to Lapeer County Officers including Deputy Salisbury and Sgt. Brady for coordinating our staff training. We are now ready to train all students on ALICE safety protocols.
The past few weeks, administrators and teachers have been busy reviewing developmental and age level curriculum and videos for all students. Next week, our teachers will begin preparing students for district-wide training on November 7th and 8th. Deputy Salisbury and Sgt. Brady as well as a few other trainers will be training staff and students at the RFMS and NHS on Monday, November 7 and will spend November 8 at NBE. Our staff has been professionally trained and we expect the next two weeks to go smoothly just as it does when we conduct lockdown drills with our students. There will be no simulated shooters or other potentially traumatizing training methods used to inform our students regarding the ALICE safety measures.
The safety of our staff and students is and will always be our top priority. The North Branch Safety Committee has made several recommendations over the past few months and the North Branch Board of Education has unanimously approved all of them including installing nightlocks and window shades on all classroom doors for enhanced security, purchasing the Crisis Alert Badges (only school in Michigan with this technology) to instantly notify all district personnel of a lockdown, and employing a full-time school resource officer. Our safety committee and district employees believe having all staff and students trained in ALICE safety protocols is the next step to be prepared for any safety scenario. Please click on this link for more information regarding ALICE safety protocols.
I will be discussing the upcoming ALICE training for our students during Tuesday’s night’s NBAS Virtual Fall update. Please visit our district website or facebook page to register for the Tuesday virtual update at 7 p.m.
Sincerely,
Jim Fish
North Branch Superintendent