On Friday, Sept. 16, all Schuylerville students and staff participated in an announced lockdown drill at 9:30 a.m. NYS Police and the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office were present on campus during the drill. This was the first lockdown drill of the 2022-23 school year; families were alerted ahead of time. Future drills may be unannounced. In addition to fire and shelter in place drills held throughout the week, a grades K-5 school bus safety drill was held on Thursday, Sept. 15.
Throughout the course of the school year, the district conducts announced and unannounced drills to ensure that our students and staff understand what they need to do in case of an emergency. While the drills are required by the state, they are also an important aspect of the district’s safety plan. We’d like to thank our students and staff for their cooperation during all of our safety drills and for recognizing the importance of taking each one seriously. The definitions of the drills are listed below, in case you would like to continue the conversation at home.
Fire drill – during a fire drill, students and staff practice exiting a building as quickly as possible and in an organized fashion.
Lockout drill – during a lockout drill, the school day continues as normal; students and staff move about the building as usual. It is used to secure school buildings and grounds during incidents that pose an imminent concern outside of the school. Generally speaking, school buildings are always in “lockout” since all entrances are always locked.
Shelter in place drill – Students and staff remain inside the building; students in hallways return to assigned classrooms and move away from windows. This is typically weather related.
Hold in place drill – Students and staff remain inside the building; students in hallways return to assigned classrooms and move away from windows. This is typically used when medical emergencies are present.
Lockdown drill – during a lockdown drill, students and staff practice clearing the hallways, locking doors and taking positions out of sight as quickly as possible.