Alisal Union reviews comprehensive school safety plans; trustees press for clearer active‑shooter language and drills
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Summary
Director Diana Garcia presented the district’s comprehensive school safety plan, emphasizing Big 5 protocols, wellness teams, ICS and annual reviews. Trustees asked whether after‑school activities and drills (including barricade/lockdown terminology) are covered and urged more direct language and training for active‑shooter scenarios while staff stressed age‑appropriate student materials and phased staff training.
Director of Pupil Personnel Services Diana Garcia presented the Alisal Union School District’s comprehensive school safety plan, outlining prevention, preparedness, response and recovery measures and the next steps for school‑site approval and county compliance.
Garcia said every site’s safety plan aligns with state law, is being reviewed by school site councils and must be approved by March 1 before coming to the board. She described prevention work (wellness teams, threat assessment training and anti‑bullying partnerships), emergency preparedness (Big 5 protocols), use of the incident command system (ICS) and reunification procedures for families.
“Safety starts before an emergency happens,” Garcia said, describing wellness teams composed of counselors, social workers and community school coordinators and a training calendar that includes annual Big 5 drills and targeted staff training.
Trustees asked about consistency across sites, whether after‑school programs and Saturday academies are included in site plans, and whether all classrooms have radios. Garcia said district policies and procedures are consistent but sites vary in schedules, incident‑command trees and local practices; radios and digital communications exist in offices and for supervisors but not every classroom.
Several trustees pushed for more direct language and training about intruders and active‑shooter incidents. One trustee said the board should not “soften” the language when discussing intruders and asked for clarity about which doors are locked and who has keys. Garcia and staff responded that staff training and student materials must be developmentally appropriate for young children and described a phased approach that includes staff training on barricade/lockdown techniques and student‑facing “Think On Your Feet” lessons.
“We’re moving slowly, but we are getting there,” Garcia said of classroom lessons about stranger‑awareness and age‑appropriate responses; she said staff receive more direct training and principals and assistant principals serve as site incident commanders.
Trustees commended the plan’s comprehensiveness and requested more detailed follow‑up on classroom‑level procedures, door locking, and whether radio coverage and SmartPass‑type location tools could support reunification. Garcia said she will continue training site staff and coordinates approval timelines; approved plans will be submitted to the county office for compliance.
