The School Board of Polk County
Bylaws & Policies
Unless a specific policy has been amended and the date the policy was revised is noted at the bottom of that policy, the bylaws and policies of The School Board of Polk County were adopted on November 12, 2013 and were in effect beginning November 12, 2013.
 

8420 - EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE AGENCIES

The School Board recognizes that its responsibility for the safety of students and staff requires that it formulate and prescribe, in consultation with appropriate public safety agencies, emergency management and emergency preparedness procedures for all public schools in the District, including emergency notification procedures for life-threatening emergencies, including, but not limited, fires; natural disasters; bomb threats; weapon-use, hostage, and active shooter situations; hazardous materials or toxic chemical spills; weather emergencies, including hurricanes, tornadoes, and severe storms; and exposure as a result of a manmade emergency and that such emergencies are best met by preparedness and planning.

The active shooter situation training for each school must engage the participation of the School Safety Specialist, threat assessment team members, faculty, staff, and students and must be conducted by the law enforcement agency or agencies that are designated as first responders to each school's campus.

Pursuant to Policy 8405 - School Safety and Security, the Superintendent (in conjunction with the School Safety Specialist) shall develop, and revise as necessary, a Critical Incident Response Plan to provide for the safety and welfare of the students and staff, as well as a system of emergency preparedness and accompanying procedures that provide for the following:

 A.a listing of the commonly used alarm system response for specific types of emergencies and verification by each school that drills have been provided as required by law and fire protection codes;

 B.the health and safety of students and staff are safeguarded;

 C.embraces a collaborative effort with community emergency responders;

 D.the time necessary for instructional purposes is not unduly diverted;

 E.minimum disruption to the educational program occurs;

 F.students are helped to learn self-reliance and trained to respond sensibly to emergency situations;

 G.the system is supported by ongoing training that will include practical application and appropriate "drills" as required by F.S. 1001.42;

 H.evacuation drills should represent actual emergencies, including, but not limited to firearm, natural disasters, and bomb threats;

 I.emergency egress and relocation drills (including, but not necessarily limited to, fire drills) in accordance with the requirements of the Florida Fire Prevention Code, the Fire Code (NFPA 1), and the Life Safety Code (NFPA 101);

 J.drills for active shooter and hostage situations shall be conducted in accordance with developmentally appropriate and age-appropriate procedures at least as often as other emergency drills; and

 K.floor plans of each school must be provided to all community emergency responders in support of evacuation procedures.

All threats to the safety of District facilities, students, and staff shall be identified by appropriate personnel and responded to promptly in accordance with the plan for emergency preparedness. Any aspect of the emergency preparedness plan and/or procedures that are included in the School Safety Plan shall remain confidential and exempt from public records disclosure in accordance with State law.

The Superintendent, as part of the development of the emergency preparedness plan and procedures, shall establish a schedule to test the functionality and coverage of all emergency communication systems and determine if adequate signal strength is available in all areas of school campuses.

List of Primary Emergency Response Agencies

The primary emergency response agencies that are responsible for notifying the District for each type of emergency are as follows:

 A.Fires:

  1.Polk County Emergency Management

  2.Polk County Fire Department

  3.Auburndale Fire Department

  4.Bartow Fire Department

  5.Haines City Fire Department

  6.Lakeland Fire Department

  7.Lake Alfred Fire Department

  8.Lake Wales Fire Department

  9.Winter Haven Fire Department

 B.Natural Disasters:
  Polk County Emergency Management

 C.Bomb Threats:

  1.Polk County Sheriff’s Department

  2.Auburndale Police Department

  3.Bartow Police Department

  4.Haines City Police Department

  5.Lake Alfred Police Department

  6.Lake Wales Police Department

  7.Lakeland Police Department

  8.Winter Haven Police Department

 D.Weapon-Use, Hostage, and Active Shooter Situations:

  1.Polk County Sheriff’s Department

  2.Auburndale Police Department

  3.Bartow Police Department

  4.Haines City Police Department

  5.Lake Alfred Police Department

  6.Lake Wales Police Department

  7.Lakeland Police Department

  8.Winter Haven Police Department

 E.Hazardous Materials or Toxic Chemical Spills:

  1.Polk County Emergency Management

  2.Polk County Sheriff’s Department

 F.Weather Emergencies, Including Hurricanes, Tornadoes, and Severe Storms:
  Polk County Emergency Management

 G.Exposure as a Result of a Manmade Emergency:
  Polk County Emergency Management

The individual(s) responsible for contacting the primary emergency response agencies listed above are as follows:

 A.Principal

 B.assistant principal

 C.District Safety Specialist

The information in this section shall be part of the Critical Incident Response Plan, and, therefore, confidential.

Florida Fire Prevention Code (F.S. 633.202)
F.S. 1001.43
F.S. 1006.07
F.S. 1013.13
Fire Code (NFPA 1)
Life Safety Code (NFPA 101)

Revised 9/4/18
Revised 7/30/19

© Neola 2019