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Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) takes proactive measures to protect the safety of all our students and staff members. FCPS representatives sit on the Fairfax County local emergency planning committees and emergency management teams, the groups that are planning our community’s responses to potential threats. Our plans, which have been cited by both the US Department of Education, the US Department of Homeland security and the American Prepared Campaign as national models, are made in concert with all other local emergency preparedness plans.
The school division and all FCPS school facilities have safety and security plans. The plans are designed with the help of school security staff members, as well as local law enforcement, emergency management, and public health officials. Plans are regularly reviewed and updated. These plans include procedures to respond to critical incidents, such as fire or tornado, and school system personnel practice these drills regularly.
Fairfax County Public Schools works in close collaboration with local, state, and federal health, safety, and emergency personnel to develop and maintain plans for coping with a variety of emergency response situations. These plans involve efforts to protect all students while they are at school. FCPS also is a key resource for facilities and transportation in regional emergency response situations.
The actions taken during any type of emergency situation depend a great deal on the specifics of the incident. For example, one or more schools may evacuate, lock down, or initiate a shelter-in-place response, according to the nature of the threat. The main objective is the protection of the students and staff members. School administrators have a variety of "tools" to use and have received training on how to work with each of these. The ability to remain flexible is a key component of each school's plan and of divisionwide preparations. Additionally, FCPS would follow direction from public safety officials.
If you have questions about your child or about your school's safety and support responses, please contact your principal. Everyone in Fairfax County Public Schools continues to work to make all our schools safe and secure environments for all our students.
FCPS
Crisis Terms 101
These standardized emergency response terms help protect students, staff and the community.
Play (03:11)
- Terms and Procedures for Critical Incidents (PDF document)
- Response to Homeland Security Codes
- Review of FCPS Safety and Security Measures
- FCPS Emergency Messages
- FCPS Crisis Response, including crisis management, crisis communication, and crisis intervention
- FCPS Resources for Major Critical Incidents
- Emergency Preparedness and Support Frequently Asked Questions
- Preparedness in America's Schools (PDF document)
Other
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Emergency Preparedness & Response
- Security Precautions Suggested by the U.S. Department of Education
- General emergency preparedness information for Fairfax County residents
- Coping with tragedy, disaster, war & terrorism provided by Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board
- Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) publication Are You Ready? A Guide to Citizen Preparedness
- FEMA for Kids, a web site with age-appropriate information for children on disasters
- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security web site www.ready.gov, provides information to help citizens prepare for a variety of situations.
- www.makeaplan.org provides coordinated emergency preparedness resources for the communities of the National Capital area.
FCPS broadcasts emergency messages, when necessary, using a number of media. General emergency messages and early and late school openings and closings can be found on the school system public web home page and on cable Channel 21. Emergency messages are also posted in English, Spanish and Korean on the FCPS hot line, 1-800-839-FCPS (3277). Emergency messages are sent by e-mail to subscribers of FCPS Keep In Touch. Emergency messages are transmitted to local media, and parents are encouraged to listen to the radio or television.
Effective crisis response is a team effort. In Fairfax County Public Schools, three offices play lead roles in shaping the organization's response to critical incidents. In any such event, these offices work with each other, with the leaders at the site, and with public safety officials to provide immediate and coordinated action.
Crisis management
Leading the immediate and long-term response to the incident itself is the Department of Facilities and Transportation Services' Office of Safety and Security (OSS). Sound planning and preparation is key.
- OSS has designed extensive materials to help FCPS schools and departments with this work, including the Crisis Management Workbook (PDF document) that serves as the template schools use to construct their own site-specific plans.
- For additional security information, check the OSS fact sheets.
- For more information, contact Fred Ellis, director, Office of Safety and Security, fred.ellis@fcps.edu.
Crisis communications
Ensuring that students, staff members, parents, the media, and the community have accurate and timely information during a crisis is the responsibility of the Office of Community Relations.
- The office is responsible for broadcast of all FCPS emergency messages.
- For more information, contact Paul Regnier, paul.regnier@fcps.edu.
Crisis Intervention
Providing care and support for students and staff members affected by a crisis is led by crisis response teams staffed by school psychologists, social workers, and counselors.
- Resources for dealing with crisis
- For more information, contact Cindy Dickinson, coordinator for crisis intervention, cindy.dickinson@fcps.edu.
DISCLAIMER: This web page contains links to one or more web pages that are outside the FCPS network. FCPS does not control the content or relevancy of these pages.
Last update:
October 23, 2008
Curator: Nancy Moy, Nancy.Moy@fcps.edu
