Teaching teachers how to handle dangerous situations
Could teachers become first responders during an emergency? That’s the question being asked in Monterey County as local educators say they’d like training from law enforcement in response to active threats.
According to the Monterey County Office of Education, the average response time to an active shooting is 2-3 minutes. However, they say most incidents happen in about two minutes. That’s why they say it’s important we look at teachers and other school staff as first responders of sorts.
“I’d like to say it’s like the fire department, ‘Drill, drill, drill and go fight a fire once in a while,'” said Terry Ryan, Director of Maintenance Operations, Transportation and Food Service for the Salinas City Elementary School District. “We want to drill, drill, drill and maybe never have that situation. But better be prepared than not be prepared and have that incident, so.”
There are special locks called “Columbine Locks” which lock from the inside, cameras and one way in and out of the school.
“We feel that we are always in a state of emergency,” said Roosevelt Elementary School Vice Principal Esabel Cervantes. “That there’s always a crisis on the horizon, and it’s unfortunate, it’s a sad reality.”
But the school is always looking for ways to improve safety. So is the Office of Education, as it continues working on a comprehensive safety plan that’s been in the works for several years. They’re planning to tackle tactical training needs, but they aren’t aiming to arm teachers with weapons, rather, arm them with tools to make rational decisions in high stress situations.
“So the tactical component is based more on what does staff, students, administrators do in the event of an emergency,” said Joshua Jorn, Executive Director of General Services at the Office of Education. “Physically, what are they doing. It’s not just grab a binder and look at a plan, it’s what do they physically do.”
Tools they could learn from the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.
“It’s mostly to teach or expose teachers to the tactics that we use,” said Commander John Thornburg, “But I think mostly it focuses on the tactics that they can learn that may help with either survivability or in dealing with high stress situations.”
The vice principal of Roosevelt says she supports it.
“We’ve actually discussed the possibility of coming together with our first responders,” Cervantes said. “And they have input in how we’re running our drills to ensure secure campuses and make sure that all of our employees and our students are safe.”
The Office of Education also wants to standardize its emergency policy. Whether it’s in Northern Monterey County or South County, they want educators and law enforcement to be on the same page with terminology and standard operating procedures. They say if it is uniform, it’s less likely to be confusing.
