Emergency at School - Tips for Parents

Guilford County Schools Emergency Management Department works closely with public safety agencies at the local, county, state, and federal levels to develop and refine plans for handling emergencies.  School emergency operations plans are site specific and based on size, infrastructure, available resources, geographic location and community needs.  GCS develops its emergency response procedures based on best practices and doctrine provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and utilizes the Incident Command System.

Preparation tips:

Prepare your child at home by teaching them to remain calm and follow the directions of their teacher or other adult in charge while at school.

Ensure your child’s emergency contact information is up to date.

Talk to your child about emergencies and how to respond to them, both at school and at home.

Review resources provided by the ready.gov.

In the event of an emergency:

Remain calm and monitor reliable news sources and verified GCS social media feeds for information; do not rely on information not relayed by GCS or first responders. Critical information and instructions will be relayed via ConnectEd messages.          

Do not go to the school unless instructed to do so.  In some cases, the school may be in “lockdown” and you will not be able to access the school.  In other cases, evacuation from the school campus may be required and your child will not be at the school.

If the school is evacuated, you will be notified of the evacuation site and given instructions for reuniting with your child.  Evacuation site locations are not given in advance, as they may change depending on the nature of the emergency.

Your cooperation with school personnel, law enforcement and other first responders is critical to your safety and the safety of your child. 

Guilford County Schools is using the Standard Response Protocol (SRP) from the The "I Love U Guys" Foundation keeping emergency response simple for our schools.

During any emergency, our priorities are:

1) Take action to keep students/staff safe

2) Communicate conditions and actions with families

3) Return school to normal activities

To learn more about the Standard Response Protocol, click here.