The Oxford School District (OSD) and Oxford Police (OPD) and Fire Departments (OFD) completed an active shooter drill Tuesday, May 29 to ensure a plan was in place in case of an emergency.
“Student safety is top priority and were are continuously revising our security measures to help our families and community in a time of need,” said Brian Harvey, OSD superintendent. “The collaboration between our school resource officers (SROs) and the City of Oxford and Lafayette County assured me that we have a great team working together to protect our campuses.”
The board reviews and approves a school safety plan each year to ensure the students’ safety, according to Gray Edmondson, president of the Oxford School Board. The district also has the SROs complete training each year, as well.
An administrator within the district works with OPD Chief of Police Joey East and the SROs to maintain an up-to-date and accurate plan, Edmondson said.
“We run these drills once or twice a year,” he said. “There is one while the students are actually [at school] that is intended to facilitate training in the event or otherwise.”
This past Tuesday’s drill involved 30+ students as Training Chief Darien Roy with the OFD serving as facilitator.
Mark Heath, chief of the OFD, said the execution of the drill went accordingly to the logistics that were set in place in case of an active shooter incident.
The fire department, along with OPD and emergency medical services (EMS), responded with two fire engines and one truck, each with crews of nine personnel to assist with the drill.
The main objectives for the OFD in situations of school emergencies is to address any fire threat, manage the fire alarm panels and assist EMS in the process of triage (sorting) patients by severity of injuries and preparing them for transport by ground ambulance or helicopter, Heath said.
He said the OFD will continue to work with all emergency entities to ensure a clear line of communication is achieved for incidents such as an active shooter.
“We continue to train on these events to ensure the best preparation possible for emergency responders to manage an active shooter incident,” Heath said.
In addition to active shooter drills, the school district has implemented training to employees regarding strategies to keep schools from being targets, Edmondson said. This includes instructing faculty and staff to not open doors for those who haven’t been vetted through the front office first.
OSD has contracted a consultant to bring an outside perspective to what the school system is implementing in safety, Edmondson said.
The consultant and school district in conjunction will write and present a recommendations and improvements report to present at a future school board meeting.
For more information regarding Oxford School District’s safety plans, read OHS Revamps Security Measures After Parkland Shooting.
By Talbert Toole, associate editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at talbert.toole@hottytoddy.com.
