Hicksville Public Schools

District-Wide Safety Plan

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District-Wide Safety Plan

Policy Statement

The District-Wide School Safety Plan (as required by the SAVE Law – Safe Schools Against Violence in Education – Commissioner of Education Regulation 155.17 and Education Law 2801-a) has been established to provide for the safety, health and security of both students and staff and allows for input from the entire school community. This particular component of Project SAVE is a comprehensive planning effort that addresses prevention, mitigation, protection, response and recovery with respect to a variety of emergencies that may occur in the school district and its component school buildings.

The Board of Education has appointed, under the direction of the Superintendent of Schools, a District-Wide School Safety Team to develop, implement and maintain all provisions of the Plan. This Plan incorporates all Building-Level Emergency Response Plans that have been developed by the Building-Level Emergency Response Teams appointed by the Building Principals.  In the event of an emergency or violent incident, the initial response at an individual school building will be the responsibility of the school building Emergency Response Team. Upon activation of the school building Emergency Response Team the Superintendent of Schools or designee and appropriate local emergency response officials will be notified. The nature of any given emergency will dictate the degree of interaction with both State and Local Emergency Response Agencies. The local BOCES Health & Safety Office will assist in development of protocols for accessing these services.

The District-Wide School Safety Team reviewed and approved the District-Wide School Safety Plan. The District-Wide School Safety Plan was made available for public comment 30 days prior to its adoption and provided for participation of the entire school community. By September 1st of each school year, the District-Wide and Building-Level Plans are formally adopted by the School Board after at least one public hearing. As required by law, the District-Wide School Safety Plan is posted on the school district website by October 1st of each school year and will be reviewed annually by the District-Wide School Safety Team by September 1st of each school year. Building-Level Emergency Response Plans will be updated by September 1st of each school year by the Building-level Emergency Response Team and filed with both State and Local Police by October 1st of each school year. 

The school district refuses to tolerate violence or threats of violence on school grounds and, by implementation of this Plan, will make every effort to prevent violent incidents from occurring. We will provide the appropriate authority and budgetary resources in support of this effort. Violence prevention is the responsibility of the entire school community and we encourage participation of all individuals. Our Plan requires the prompt reporting of all violent incidents or threats and assures that victims or reporters of incidents of violence will not be discriminated against. A copy of the District-Wide School Safety Plan is also available upon request at central administration in the office of the Superintendent of Schools. Although the Building-Level Emergency Response Plans are linked to the District-Wide School Safety Plan, in accordance with Education Law Section 2801-a, the Building-Level Emergency Response Plan will remain confidential and not be subject to disclosure. This will ensure safety at the building-level and reduce potential for planned sabotage.

Regulatory Requirements Overview

 Elements of the District-wide School Safety Plan:  Compliance Checklist

Policies and procedures for:

• responding to implied or direct threats of violence by students, teachers, other school personnel and visitors to the school, including threats by students against themselves (including suicide) CR155.17(c)(1)(i)
• responding to acts of violence by students, teachers, other school personnel and visitors to the school, including consideration of zero-tolerance policies for school violence CR155.17(c)(1)(ii)
• contacting appropriate law enforcement officials in the event of a violent incident CR155.17(c)(1)(iv)
• contacting parents, guardians, or persons in parental relation to the students of the district in the event of a violent incident or an early dismissal CR155.17(c)(1)(ix)
• contacting parents, guardians, or persons in parental relation to an individual student of the district in the event of an implied or direct threat of violence by such student against themselves (including suicide) CR155.17(c)(1)(x)
• the dissemination of informative materials regarding the early detection of potentially violent behaviors, including but not limited to the identification of family, community and environmental factors to teachers, administrators, parents and other persons in parental relation to students of the school district or board, students and other persons deemed appropriate to receive such information CR155.17(c)(1)(xii)

Prevention and intervention strategies, such as:

• collaborative arrangements with State and local law enforcement officials, designed to ensure that school safety officers and other security personnel are adequately trained, including being trained to de-escalate potentially violent situations, and are effectively and fairly recruited CR155.17(c)(1)(iii)
• nonviolent conflict resolution training programs CR155.17(c)(1)(iii)
• peer mediation programs and youth courts CR155.17(c)(1)(iii)
• extended day and other school safety programs CR155.17(c)(1)(iii)

Arrangements and/or Procedures during emergencies for:

• description of the arrangements for obtaining assistance during emergencies from emergency services organizations and local governmental agencies* CR155.17(c)(1)(v)
• the procedures for obtaining advice and assistance from local government officials, including the county or city officials responsible for implementation of article 2-B of the Executive Law* CR155.17(c)(1)(vi)
• the identification of district resources which may be available for use during an emergency* CR155.17(c)(1)(vii)
• description of procedures to coordinate the use of school district resources and manpower during emergencies, including identification of the officials authorized to make decisions and of the staff members assigned to provide assistance during emergencies* CR155.17(c)(1)(viii)
• a system for informing all educational agencies within such school district of a disaster* CR155.17(c)(1)(xviii)
• The identification of appropriate responses to emergencies, including protocols for responding to bomb threats, hostage-takings, intrusions and kidnappings CR155.17(c)(1)(xv)

Policies and Procedures relating to school building security, including, where appropriate:

The use of school safety or security officers and/or school resource officers:

• Beginning with the 2019-20 school year, and every school year thereafter, every school shall define the areas of responsibility of school personnel, security personnel and law enforcement in response to student misconduct that violates the code of conduct. A school district or charter school that employs, contracts with, or otherwise retains law enforcement or public or private security personnel, including school resource officers, shall establish a written contract or memorandum of understanding that is developed with stakeholder input, including, but not limited to, parents, students, school administrators, teachers, collective bargaining units, parent and student organizations and community members, as well as probation officers, prosecutors, defense counsels and courts that are familiar with school discipline. Such written contract or memorandum of understanding shall define the relationship between a school district or charter school, school personnel, students, visitors, law enforcement, and public or private security personnel. Such contract or memorandum of understanding shall be consistent with the code of conduct, define law enforcement or security personnel's roles, responsibilities and involvement within a school and clearly delegate the role of school discipline to the school administration. Such written contract or memorandum of understanding shall be incorporated into and published as part of the district safety plan CR155.17(c)(1)(xi)(a)
• security devices or procedures CR155.17(c)(1)(xi)(b)
• Procedures for review and the conduct of drills and other exercises to test components of the emergency response plan, including the use of tabletop exercises, in coordination with local and county emergency responders and preparedness officials CR155.17(c)(1)(xiv)
• Strategies for improving communication among students and between students and staff and reporting of potentially violent incidents, such as the establishment of youth- run programs, peer mediation, conflict resolution, creating a forum or designating a mentor for students concerned with bullying or violence and establishing anonymous reporting mechanisms for school violence CR155.17(c)(1)(xvi)
• A description of the duties of hall monitors and any other school safety personnel CR155.17(c)(1)(xvii)
• A description of the training required of all personnel acting in a school security capacity CR155.17(c)(1)(xvii)
• A description of the hiring and screening process for all personnel acting in a school security capacity CR155.17(c)(1)(xvii)
• Protocols for responding to state disaster emergencies involving public health; districts must adopt a continuation of operations plan in the event the governor declares a public health emergency involving communicable disease; Due April 1, 2021
• The designation of the superintendent, or superintendent’s designee, as the district chief emergency officer whose duties shall include, but not be limited to: (a) coordination of the communication between school staff, law enforcement, and other first responders; (b) lead the efforts of the district-wide school safety team in the completion and yearly update of the district-wide school safety plan and the coordination of the district-wide plan with the building-level emergency response plans; (c) ensure staff understanding of the district–wide school safety plan; (d) ensure the completion and yearly update of building-level emergency response plans for each school building; (e) assist in the selection of security related technology and development of procedures for the use of such technology; (f) coordinate appropriate safety, security, and emergency training for district and school staff, including required training in the emergency response plan; (g) ensure the conduct of required evacuation and lock-down drills in all district buildings as required by Education Law section 807; and (h) ensure the completion and yearly update of building-level emergency response plans by the dates designated by the commissioner. CR155.17(c)(1)(xix)

Policies and procedures for annual multi-hazard school safety training for staff and students providing that the district must: 

• certify to the commissioner that all staff have undergone annual training by September 15, 2016 and each subsequent September 15th thereafter on the building-level emergency response plan which must include components on violence prevention and mental health, provided further that new employees hired after the start of the school year shall receive such training within 30 days of hire or as part of the district’s existing new hire training program, whichever is sooner. CR155.17(c)(1)(xiii)

The district-wide safety plan must be available for public comment at least 30 days prior to its adoption. CR155.17(3)(i)

• Such district-wide plans may be adopted by the school board only after at least one public hearing that provides for the participation of school personnel, parents, students and any other interested parties. CR155.17(3)(i)
• Each district shall submit its district-wide safety plan and all amendments to such plan to the commissioner, in a manner prescribed by the commissioner, within 30 days after its adoption. Commencing with the 2019-2020 school year, such district-wide plans must be submitted no later than October 1, 2019, and each subsequent October 1st thereafter. CR155.17(3)(i)

Public Health Emergencies – Communicable Disease

Effective April 1, 2021, Labor Law §27-c, amends Labor Law §27-1 and adds a new provision to Education Law §2801-a.  Labor Law §27-c requires public employers to develop operation plans in the event of certain declared public health emergencies.  Education Law §2801-a requires school districts to develop plans consistent with the new Labor Law requirement. The new law requires public employers to prepare a plan for the continuation of operations in the event that the Governor declares a public health emergency involving a communicable disease. Educational institutions must prepare plans consistent with Labor Law §27-c as part of their school safety plans pursuant to newly added subsection (2)(m) of Education Law §2801-a. The Plan must include the following at a minimum:

• A list and description of positions and titles considered essential with justification for that determination.
• The specific protocols that will be followed to enable non-essential employees and contractors to telecommute.
• A description of how the employer will, to the extent possible, stagger work shifts of essential employees and contractors to reduce workplace and public transportation overcrowding.
• Protocols to be implemented to secure personal protective equipment (PPE) sufficient to supply essential workers with 2 pieces of each PPE device needed for each work shift for at least six months. This must include a plan for storage of such equipment to prevent degradation and permit immediate access in the event of an emergency declaration.
• Protocols to prevent spread in the workplace in the event an employee or contractor is exposed, exhibits symptoms, or tests positive for the relevant communicable disease. Such protocols must include disinfection of the individual’s work area and common areas. It must also address the policy on available leave with respect to testing, treatment, isolation or quarantine.