Calhoun Middle School Crisis Management Guidelines

Dear Parents:

Should an emergency or disaster situation ever arise in our area while school is in session, we want you to be aware that the Denton Independent School District and Calhoun Middle School have made preparations to respond effectively to such situations. In fact, public schools in Texas are required to meet stringent disaster response standards, and your children may be safer than in your own home in the event of a disaster.

Should we have a major incident or disaster during school hours, your student(s) will be cared for at this school. The Denton Independent School District has a detailed disaster plan that has been formulated to respond to any crisis situation. Your cooperation is vital in any emergency. In case of such an emergency, please help us by doing the following:

1. Do not telephone the school. Telephone lines will be needed for emergency communication. Any large overload of services may result in the entire phone system shutting down, disabling phone contact with emergency personnel. It is important for parents not to telephone the school.

2. In the event of a serious incident, students will be kept at their schools until they are picked up by an identified, responsible adult who has been designated as such on a school district emergency card which is filled out by parents at the beginning of every school year. Please be sure you consider the following criteria when you authorize another person to pick up your child at school:

• they are 18 years of age

• they are usually home during the day

• they could walk to school, if necessary

• they are known to your child

• they are both aware and able to assume this responsibility

3. When inclement weather conditions exist, visit www.unt.edu, check the UNT Facebook page or listen for weather details on local media outlets, such as KNTU (88.1FM), before you begin driving to campus. You can also follow @UNTEagleAlert to get emergency updates in real time.

Students will be released only to parents and persons identified on the School District Emergency Card. They must have picture identification.

During an extreme emergency, students will be released at designated reunion gates located on school campuses. Parents should plan on being patient and understanding with the student release process. It is a methodical process designed to ensure you that your child has been released to the adult of your choice or is being taken care of by us until you, the parent, arrive. Please instruct your student to remain at school until you or a designee arrives. Since local telephone service may be disrupted, also list an out-of-state contact on the emergency card since calls may still be made out of the area while incoming calls are affected.

The decision to keep students at school will be based upon whether or not streets in the area are open. If this occurs, radio stations will be notified. If students are removed from campus, they will be taken to Denton High School, or the Village Church for parent pick-up. These are the alternate back up off campus sites.

The basic disaster responses are;

Evacuations may be ordered in the event of such incidents as fire and/or explosions. All students are to quickly go to their assigned exit and report to their Team teachers.

In case of a “hazardous release event” (chemical spill) or “police emergency” near the school area, “Shelter-in-Place” procedures will be implemented to provide in place protection. All students and staff will clear the areas, report to their rooms, and all efforts will be made to prevent outside air or intruders from entering classrooms during the emergency. Students arriving at school during a “Shelter-in-Place” drill or event should report to the school office or to a previously designated area at the school since classrooms will be inaccessible. When the dangerous incident has subsided, an all clear signal will be given.

In the event of gunfire, students will be instructed to “hit the deck” which means quickly lying flat on the ground, face down. When the situation appears safe enough, the students will be brought back into the building for shelter-in-place.

During the threat of severe weather, the students will be in weather safe areas in each of the buildings well before the weather is predicted to hit. The weather is monitored in a variety of ways by office staff. 

Please discuss these matters with your immediate family. You may even want to begin your own family plan of action. Planning ahead will help alleviate concern during any type of emergency or disaster incident that may occur.

Sincerely,

Jacqueline San Miguel-Lozano, Head of School 

And

Calhoun Middle School Crisis Management Team