The lockdown lowdown for Jeffco schools

On Dec. 15, an Evergreen High School student made threatening comments that sparked concern among students and staff.

In February, a Northglenn High School student took pictures of Arvada K-8 and threatened over text and social mediato enter the school with a gun.

On March 1, a student brought a BB gun to North Arvada Middle School in a backpack, scaring students who reported it to school staff.

In all three incidents, the schools were immediatelylocked down –; a security measure that prevents anyone from entering or leaving the building. No one was injured in any of the incidents.

Although three lockdowns in a few months may seem like a high number, according to the Jefferson County School District it actually is on par with the amount seen over the past five years.

“This year, we’re trending about the same, but we’ve had all three cases in a month and a half,” said John McDonald, Jeffco’s executive director of security and emergency management. “They’ve all been really legitimate issues where we had concern and safety of our students.”

A lockdown is the securing of a school and its surroundings when an imminent threat is present inside or outside the school. All teaching and professional operations stop, students and staff are repeatedly notified to lock down by locking classroom doors, turning off lights and keeping out of the sightline of windows as district staff and police respond to the threat. Often, vehicle and walking traffic are also blocked or rerouted around the school.

Lockdowns –; a school’s highest form of protection as well as one of the last resorts in times of crisis –; is one of three safety protocols that the school district practices throughout the school year to prepare for a time when the sitiuation is real. School security has become a focal emphasis for districts with the increasingly frequent number of fatal school shootings, including six in Colorado since 1981. Three of those occurred in Jeffco.

“Our community wouldn’t tolerate it if we we’re wrong,” McDonald said. “We need to do everything to keep our kids safe.”

District policy states any adult may call a lockdown of a building in cases where a weapon is identified in someone’s possession, the building is actively engaged with a threat, or a person on site is threatening someone or the building. Jeffco schools must undergo monthly fire drills and have two emergency drills –; either a lockdown or lockout –; per year to teach students and staff how to respond in such a situation. (A lockout occurs when the perceived threat is outside the school and is not considered imminent. It prevents anyone from entering or leaving the building, but classes and work continues as normal.)

“Any emergency is managed best when all parties remain calm and follow their training … which is exactly what occurred at North Arvada,” said Sohne Van Selus, principal at North Arvada Middle School, which locked down March 1 when a student brought a BB gun to school. “Every situation is different –; unique –; which is why we conduct drills at a variety of times during the day.”

All three students involved in the recent lockdowns were arrested but McDonald would not elaborate on specific charges. The charge on one student was dismissed, he said.

Typically, a lockdown, once called, occurs at the building within 30 seconds, McDonald said.

After being locked down, the district’s dispatch station notifies law enforcement, the district security team and communications office, then parents –; all within 10 minutes of the occurrence. A lockdown typically lasts three to five hours, depending on the situation.

Communication with parents and the community, key to any lockdown situation, is often the most challenging because of accessibility to technology, McDonald and Van Selus said.

Students –; including kindergartners –; have cellphones and iPods, which allows them to text, send Snapchats, tweet and post information from within schools walls, often faster than the district can send out accurate communication.

“For their safety, the expectation is that students are silent, in the dark and out of sight. Yet, in today’s ‘plugged-in’ world, we would be remiss to think students are not going to use their cellphones,” Van Selus said. Her school is working to train students to use the Remind 101 one-way communication app, which in an emergency situation forwards district communications to students that may be forwarded onto parents.

“These kids are digital natives, and we’re digital immigrants,” McDonald said. “When a kid has a device in their hand, they can put out information faster than we can and, sometimes, they’re saying two completely different things.”

During crisis situations, emotions are heightened and perception of what’s happening can be far different from reality, McDonald added. He recalled a time where he knocked on a classroom door to ensure students were safe and a student tweeted “I hear gunshots” outside the classroom.

For parents, like Hackberry Hill parent and PTA President Shawna Fritzler, the miscommunication is frustrating because the news that your child’s school is on lockdown is scary news.

“When it’s your baby still inside, it’s flat out terrifying,” she said, noting the number of calls she received in early March during North Arvada’s lockdown. Hackberry Hill is a North Arvada feeder school. “It’s difficult when the district sends out communications, and if it’s not worded just right, it can send out the wrong message.”

That delay in the communications process is nearly unavoidable because it takes longer to get the various entities on scene than it takes students to communicate with their devices, McDonald said.

District officials will continue to refine that process, McDonald said, in their effort to improve safety for their students. There’s always something more to learn: McDonald’s staff, for instance, tracks and monitors all school shootings throughout the world to understand the latest security responses and trends.

The ultimate goal is keeping students safe.

With that in mind, students, school staff, security personnel and law enforcement undergo training throughout the year –; such as for lockdowns –; to perfect response to emergency situations.

“People see lockdowns as a general trend. They’re hypersensitive to mass shootings and school shootings –; it’s the threat of our time,” McDonald said. “You practice today so you can respond tomorrow. And if you can keep everyone safe, then you have success.”

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