School Safety

The ANWSD strives to provide a safe and secure learning and teaching environment while maintaining an open and welcoming school. ANWSD is exposed to different hazards that have the potential to disrupt normal operations within the ANWSD and local community.

Together we can make our schools stronger and safer. Students teachers, parents, school administrators, local law enforcement, and community members have a role to play in creating a safe and secure environment for everyone. We also have a dedicated team of safety professionals who are committed to creating a safe learning and working environment for our students and staff.

Here are some of the ways that the District has engaged in safety and security preparedness efforts.

• The key to safe school environments is strong relationships.  At ANWSD we work hard to ensure that every student has at least one trusted adult in the building to turn to when needed.  We have strong programs, policies and procedures for the prevention of Bullying and Harassment and are reinforcing the power of empathy and compassion with our focus on Social Emotional Learning (SEL) skills.  

• We collaborate with local emergency planners and with our first response community on our school emergency preparedness efforts.  The ANWSD has a strong relationship with our local law enforcement and we often work with these members to discuss potential crisis situations. ANWSD also receives support from Mental Health Professionals through Counseling Services of Addison County (CSAC). 

• Safety Teams:  Each ANWSD school has a School Safety Team which meets regularly to review and evaluate our emergency procedures and stay up to date on emergency protocols from the State of Vermont. We have a District Safety Committee to help establish best practices and coordinate regional security measures.

• Access Control Protocol:  To help maintain the safety and security of students and adults in our community all ANWSD schools utilize an access control and visitor management procedure. Many of our schools require you to use a video doorbell before gaining entry and all schools require guests and visitors to sign in before being permitted to move throughout the building.

• Emergency Protocols:  ANWSD schools routinely practice safety drills so that staff and students can quickly and calmly: evacuate in the case of fire or other environmental hazards, secure themselves away from an emergency inside the building, or lockout a situation occurring outside the building. For many years now, students have participated in these drills on a schedule set by the Vermont Agency of Education. 

• Active Threat Response:  At the recommendation of the Vermont Governor’s School Safety Council, the Agency of Education, and the U.S Department of Homeland Security, ANWSD has begun the transition to what is known as an “options-based” response protocol for addressing the unlikely presence of an active threat in our schools. The protocol we have chosen – Run, Hide, Fight – empowers people to choose a response to an active threat situation based on the information they have in the moment, known as situational awareness.

  Adults in our PreK-5 buildings are trained in these protocols.  Students in these buildings will be trained, as they have been in the past, to either shelter or evacuate as quickly and quietly as possible.  At MS/HS level, students as well as staff, will be trained in Run, Hide, Fight. Parents of MS/HS students will be informed before and after each of these new drills. ANWSD does not intend to have any unscheduled active threat drills, and we do not believe in causing trauma through play acting or other high-intensity practices.

  Violence in schools is not a topic any of us want to think about, but in today’s world, it would be irresponsible to not be prepared.  At ANWSD we believe the actions described above strike a good balance in protecting our school community without causing undue anxiety to our children.