Every Board of Education employee receives ongoing annual training in school safety. There is an emergency planning team in place at every school as well as a countywide planning team at the central office. These individuals receive many hours of specialized training in order to have the ability to write comprehensive critical incident plans. Since the 1998-99 school year, every principal is required to update their critical incident plan to be certain that they meet all of Maryland’s regulations, as well as, the school safety planning requirements mandated by the U.S. Department of Education. In addition, principals are also required to perform drills for every posture response, including: 1. Hold! In your room or area. Clear the halls. 2. Secure! Get inside. Lock outside doors. 3. Lockdown! Locks, lights, out of sight. 4. Evacuate! 5. Shelter! Hazard and safety strategy.

The school system asks that local area business partners help educate the public by reporting accurate information. Needless to say, the residents of Allegany County should be assured that their students’ safety is the top priority for system administrators and ACPS’s current security precautions will get stricter as unfortunate world events continue to unfold, making certain that the staff and students of Allegany County are prepared to respond to emergency situations to reduce the level of risk.