With Calabasas High School being about four months into the school year, the school has had plenty of opportunities to become familiar with the school’s lockdown protocols. Dr. Dan Stepenosky, superintendent of Las Virgenes Unified Schools, made it his mission before it got too deep into the school year to highlight the security protocols at LVUSD schools. A couple of drills and a secure protocol later, though, not everybody had it down yet.
The different safety levels are displayed in a diagram that all teachers have on a wall in their room. The diagram was given to the district by the LA County Sheriff’s Department and is used throughout the school district.
“This is what they gave to us, it’s the protocols they follow, the terminology they want us to use for all of our safety things. It’s all of the different types of safety things that could come up on campus,” says John Wells, the Assistant Principal of Safety, Facilities, and Athletics.
A hold, for example, could be when there is an emergency vehicle trying to get through campus and people need to stay inside and out of the way. Secure protocol is when there’s a potential threat to the safety of the campus.
“You need to lock the doors, but [can go] about business in the room,” says Wells.
The secure protocol was used on September 13, when there was talk of a potential weapon on campus in possession by a student.
“There’s been almost a 100% increase across the country in false threats to school. And so secure is meant to be something that doesn’t freak people out and is easy to get into and out of,” says Stepenosky.
The lockdown protocol, the most common term, occurs when an identified threat on campus needs to be removed for the safety of people on campus.
“The lockdown is the one where you lock everything down, lights off, and hide,” says Wells.
In the event of a fire, earthquake, or similar event, an evacuation would be followed. All people on campus would head towards a designated evacuation location, which in CHS’s case is usually the football field.
CHS did not always follow this protocol for fire drills, though. Before Principal Bennett Wutkee assumed his role as principal, an evacuation for a fire drill simply included walking out onto the quad and taking attendance there.
“Last year was my first year, and we evacuated into the quad, and I evaluated that situation and said, I’m not comfortable with this as our protocol. It’s really chaotic, and it felt super unsafe to me. I want us to be on the field,” says Wutkee.
A shelter, which is similar, would be if there is something in the area that could be a fire hazard, and people would stay on campus.
“Let’s say there’s something in the area, we need to shelter in place,” says Wells.
Aside from these safety protocols, teachers follow plenty of safety precautions at all times. All classrooms have a block on the top of the door designed to allow teachers to lock their doors without needing a key.
“I may not have my key on me. I may not be able to lock my door, so this is already here, now I have to just pull it closed. I don’t need anything else, so it’s time sensitive,” says Wutkee.
In the worst-case scenario, if there is ever a person on campus with whom staff are uncomfortable, a secure protocol would be put in place at first, and Wutkee would be in close communication with staff.
“If we’re worried about that person causing harm, we’re going to go into a lockdown and make sure that you guys are quiet, and lights are off. We would be in contact with every level of authority that we feel [is necessary],” says Wutkee.
The administration are in close contact with the Lost Hills Sheriffs, but do still have some boundaries within the relationship.
“They make recommendations. They don’t dictate our policy. The Board of Education ultimately has the sole responsibility, but we work very closely and have a great relationship with the Lost Hills Sheriff and fire department, so we always take in expert advice before making any decisions,” says Angela Falk, the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services..
Many students, parents, and staff have understandable fears about what could happen at any school, not just CHS. These protocols are designed to keep everybody safe, provide a strict protocol to follow, avoid confusion, and reduce worry.
