Minnewaska Area Schools recently announced its policies regarding the safety of students and staff during a violent critical incident at the schools. In the past, a traditional lockdown consisted of locked doors and huddling in a corner. The hiring of the School Resource Officer and ALICE training has created a more structured approach to an incident, it was explained last week.

So, what is ALICE?

ALICE is an acronym that stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate. “Alert” simply stands for getting the word out that a threat exists. “Lockdown” is finding a secure place to stay as much as possible as a starting point to buy time. The “Inform” step is to provide constant, real-time information throughout the building using all available technology.

The main intent of “Counter” is to distract the intruder, not try to physically take on the intruder. An example of a counter would be to throw objects at an intruder for a distraction. Being passive or static has typically not shown to be an effective response to most Active Shooter events. 

There are examples of recent events of school violence where the difference between passive and active responses determined survival chances. A different approach is needed to help keep our students and staff safe, it was stated in a letter from MAS to school families.  

Confronting a violent intruder should never be required in any non-law enforcement job description. How each staff member chooses to respond if directly confronted by a violent intruder is a personal choice. 

The final step, evacuation, provides techniques for safer and more strategic extrication from the building. 

The Counter step is typically the most misunderstood. It doesn’t mean fight. It is a defensive tactic. They are designed to increase survival when a threat is directing violence at you. It is not hand-to-hand combat. This part of the training is designed to equip individuals to use noise, movement, distance, obstacles and distractions to significantly decrease a shooter’s accuracy and ability. It could be something as simple as piling chairs in front of the entrances to make the door more difficult to open. 

The Oxford High School in Michigan, a site of a school shooting that had four casualties, employs the ALICE protocol. Upon research, there were mixed reviews. Several students were quoted as saying this approach definitely saved many of their classmates’ lives. Critics worry that the effects of the drills can harm the mental health of students and do little to prevent the shooting itself.

According to Navigate360, the company that owns the ALICE training program, their drills differ from traditional lockdown drills by placing a significant emphasis on proactive strategies. 

In an article on schoolsecurity.org, the president of national school safety and security services said that proposals such as ALICE, run-hide-fight and others often prey on the emotions of anxious parents and educators and create a “band-aid” solution to a more complex issue of preventing the shootings from happening. 

No two school shootings are the same, which makes it difficult to measure the effectiveness of any training program or to measure the parameters for which to educate students and staff in preparedness.

FBI Special Agent Christopher Combs stated, “If you look at the numbers, we’re looking at an active shooter event every other week in this country.” He said he believes the training is important because the idea is that a person’s response should be automatic and by doing drills and preparing as much as possible the response becomes automatic, outweighing the panic and fear of the situation.

According to Combs, it’s important for parents and educators to talk to children about what to do in the case of an active shooter and to ensure that drill protocols are well-communicated to staff, students and parents. The age appropriateness of the drills is extremely important, he said.

The Minnewaska Area School District is very open about the age-appropriateness of their training and drills and the addition of the school resource officer is certainly a big factor in the speed of response for this type of event, it was stated.