CKC(LEGAL) - SAFETY PROGRAM/RISK MANAGEMENT: EMERGENCY PLANS

Notice of Bomb Threat or Terroristic Threat

A district that receives a bomb threat or terroristic threat relating to a campus or other district facility at which students are present shall provide notification of the threat as soon as possible to the parent or guardian of or other person standing in parental relation to each student who is assigned to the campus or who regularly uses the facility, as applicable. Education Code 37.113

Emergency Operations Plan

Each district shall adopt and implement a multihazard emergency operations plan for use in the district's facilities. The plan must address prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery as defined by the Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC) in conjunction with the governor's office of homeland security and the commissioner. The plan must provide for:

  1. Training in responding to an emergency for district employees, including substitute teachers;
  2. Measures to ensure district employees, including substitute teachers, have classroom access to a telephone, including a cellular telephone, or another electronic communication device allowing for immediate contact with district emergency services or emergency services agencies, law enforcement agencies, health departments, and fire departments;
  3. Measures to ensure district communications technology and infrastructure are adequate to allow for communication during an emergency;
  4. Mandatory school drills and exercises, including drills required under Education Code 37.114 (emergency evacuations), to prepare district students and employees for responding to an emergency;
  5. Measures to ensure coordination with the Texas Department of State Health Services (TDSHS) and local emergency management agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire departments in the event of an emergency; and
  6. The implementation of a required safety and security audit [see CK].

Education Code 37.108(a)

A district shall include in its multihazard emergency operations plan:

  1. A chain of command that designates the individual responsible for making final decisions during a disaster or emergency situation and identifies other individuals responsible for making those decisions if the designated person is unavailable;
  2. Provisions that address physical and psychological safety for responding to a natural disaster, active shooter, and any other dangerous scenario identified for purposes of these provisions by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) or TxSSC;
  3. Provisions for ensuring the safety of students in portable buildings;
  4. Provisions for ensuring that students and district personnel with disabilities are provided equal access to safety during a disaster or emergency situation;
  5. Provisions for providing immediate notification to parents, guardians, and other persons standing in parental relation in circumstances involving a significant threat to the health or safety of students, including identification of the individual with responsibility for overseeing the notification;
  6. Provisions for supporting the psychological safety of students, district personnel, and the community during the response and recovery phase following a disaster or emergency situation that:
    1. Are aligned with best practice-based programs and research-based practices recommended under Health and Safety Code 161.325 (redesignated Education Code 38.351);
    2. Include strategies for ensuring any required professional development training for suicide prevention and grief-informed and trauma-informed care is provided to appropriate school personnel;
    3. Include training on integrating psychological safety and suicide prevention strategies into the district's plan, such as psychological first aid for schools training, from an approved list of recommended training established by the commissioner and TxSSC for:
      1. Members of the district's school safety and security committee [see CK];
      2. District school counselors and mental health professionals; and
      3. Educators and other district personnel as determined by the district;
    4. Include strategies and procedures for integrating and supporting physical and psychological safety that align with the provisions described by item 2, above; and
    5. Implement trauma-informed policies;
  7. A policy for providing a substitute teacher access to school campus buildings and materials necessary for the substitute teacher to carry out the duties of a district employee during an emergency or a mandatory emergency drill; and
  8. The name of each individual on the district's school safety and security committee and the date of each committee meeting during the preceding year. [See CK]

Education Code 37.108(f)

Active Shooter Emergency

A district shall include in its multihazard emergency operations plan a policy for responding to an active shooter emergency. The district may use any available community resources in developing the policy. Education Code 37.108(g)

Train Derailment

A district shall include in its multihazard emergency operations plan a policy for responding to a train derailment near a district school. A district is only required to adopt the policy if a district school is located within 1,000 yards of a railroad track, as measured from any point on the school's real property boundary line. A district may use any available community resources in developing the policy. Education Code 37.108(d)

Polling Place Security

A district shall include in its multihazard emergency operations plan a policy for district property selected for use as a polling place under Election Code 43.031. In developing the policy, the board may consult with the local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the district property selected as a polling place regarding reasonable security accommodations that may be made to the property. This requirement may not be interpreted to require the board to obtain or contract for the presence of law enforcement or security personnel for the purpose of securing a polling place located on district property. Failure to comply with this subsection does not affect the requirement of the board to make a school facility available for use as a polling place under Election Code 43.031. Education Code 37.108(e) [See GKD]

Disclosure

A document relating to a school multihazard emergency operations plan is subject to disclosure if the document enables a person to:

  1. Verify that the district has established a plan and determine the agencies involved in the development of the plan and the agencies coordinating with the district to respond to an emergency, including TDSHS, local emergency services agencies, law enforcement agencies, health departments, and fire departments;
  2. Verify that the district's plan was reviewed within the last 12 months and determine the specific review dates;
  3. Verify that the plan addresses the four phases of emergency management listed above at Emergency Operations Plan;
  4. Verify that district employees have been trained to respond to an emergency and determine the types of training, the number of employees trained, and the person conducting the training;
  5. Verify that each campus in the district has conducted mandatory emergency drills and exercises in accordance with the plan and determine the frequency of the drills;
  6. Verify that the district has established a plan for responding to a train derailment if required [see Train Derailment, above];
  7. Verify that the district has completed a safety and security audit and determine the date the audit was conducted, the person conducting the audit, and the date the district presented the results of the audit to the board [see CK];
  8. Verify that the district has addressed any recommendations by the board for improvement of the plan and determine the district's progress within the last 12 months; and
  9. Verify that the district has established a visitor policy and identify the provisions governing access to a district building or other district property.

Education Code 37.108(c-2)

[See GRC for emergency management training requirements and response to requests from other governmental entities for mutual aid]

Plan Review

A district shall submit its multihazard emergency operations plan to the TxSSC on request and in accordance with the TxSSC review cycle developed under Education Code 37.2071(a).

Any document or information collected, developed, or produced during the review and verification of multihazard emergency operations plans is not subject to disclosure under the Public Information Act (Government Code Chapter 552).

Notice of Noncompliance

Plan Deficiencies

The TxSSC shall review each district's multihazard emergency operations plan and verify the plan meets the requirements or provide the district with written notice describing the plan's deficiencies and stating that the district must correct the deficiencies in its plan and resubmit the revised plan to the TxSSC.

The TxSSC may approve a district multihazard emergency operations plan that has deficiencies if the district submits a revised plan that the center determines will correct the deficiencies.

Failure to Submit Plan

If a district fails to submit its multihazard emergency operations plan to the TxSSC for review, the TxSSC shall provide the district with written notice stating that the district has failed to submit a plan and must submit a plan to the center for review and verification.

Failure to Comply after Notice

Three Months

If three months after the date of initial notification outlined at Notice of Noncompliance, above, a district has not corrected the plan deficiencies or has failed to submit a plan, the TxSSC shall provide written notice to the district and TEA that the district has not complied with the requirements and must comply immediately.

Six Months

If a district still has not corrected the plan deficiencies or has failed to submit a plan six months after the date of initial notification, the TxSSC shall provide written notice to the district stating that the district must hold a public hearing as outlined at Public Hearing on Noncompliance, below.

If a school district has failed to submit a plan, the notice must state that the commissioner is authorized to appoint a conservator under Education Code 37.1082.

Education Code 37.2071

Public Hearing on Noncompliance

If the board receives notice of noncompliance under Education Code 37.207(e) [see CK] or 37.2071(g) [see above at Six Months], the board shall hold a public hearing to notify the public of:

  1. The district's failure to submit or correct deficiencies in a multihazard emergency operations plan or report the results of a safety and security audit to the TxSSC as required by law;
  2. The dates during which the district has not been in compliance; and
  3. The names of each member of the board and the superintendent serving in that capacity during the dates the district was not in compliance. The district shall provide this information in writing to each person at the hearing.

The board shall give members of the public a reasonable opportunity to appear before the board and to speak on the issue of the district's failure to submit or correct deficiencies in a multihazard emergency operations plan or report the results of a safety and security audit during a hearing held under this provision. A district required to hold a public hearing shall provide written confirmation to the TxSSC that the district held the hearing.

Education Code 37.1081

Argyle ISD

CKC(LEGAL)-P

UPDATE 114

DATE ISSUED: 10/17/2019