Lausanne is required to conduct various emergency safety drills throughout the school year in order to ensure student and staff preparedness in the event of an emergency. These drills are coordinated with local emergency services, and are set up months in advance.
Lausanne has an in-depth emergency response plan to navigate situations caused by fire, tornado, earthquake, flood, bomb threat or an armed intrusion. All members of the school safety team are able to access it at any time.
Lausanne is required to conduct the following drills annually:
- A monthly fire drill requiring full evacuation of a school building every 30 school days during the school year.
- A separate fire drill requiring full evacuation of a school building within the first 30 calendar days of the school year.
- Three additional safety drills during the school year which may include inclement weather, earthquake, intruder, or other emergency drills not requiring full evacuation.
- One “Code Red” Intruder Drill annually, in coordination with Local Law Enforcement.
What is a "Code Red Intruder Drill"?
A "Code Red" Drill allows our faculty, staff and students to prepare in the event that a violent intruder is on campus.
This is the most severe threat Lausanne prepares for, and requires a hard, campus-wide lockdown. We want to make sure that everyone on campus understands what to do.
These drills ARE NOT simulations and do not use "actors" to act as intruders or injured people. Police do respond to evaluate our response to the drill.
What exactly happens during a "Code Red"?
Staff and faculty are taught to react quickly if they hear gunshots or see someone with a weapon and alert our security team in a variety of ways.
An announcement is made over the intercom system and a system-wide text message is sent out to all staff and faculty alerting them to the situation. The announcement will state something similar to "this is a School-Wide lockdown. Code Red. Take immediate action."
Students, faculty and staff are taught to:
- shelter in place
- stay calm
- shut, lock or block your door
- shut the blinds
- turn off classroom lights
- silence all electronics
- keep quiet
- wait for the "All Clear" announcement
After the drill is conducted, we will send a short note to parents to let them know of the event.
Designated "Zone Leaders" work to ensure that every area is as prepared as possible.
What should I tell my child about the drill?
These drills are much more effective to test our community's preparedness when the individuals involved are not aware they are being conducted.
However: speaking with your child about what to do if they are involved in an emergency incident is always encouraged, especially when they hear about an emergency on the news or through another source.
Regardless of the location of a "Code Red" situation, it is important that everyone remembers to run away from the commotion, hide and evade if leaving the area is impossible, and, as a last resort, fight.
Remaining flexible to protect our community.
It's hard to predict or prepare for every situation that could occur. Know that each Lausanne staff and faculty member will take all actions necessary to protect and safeguard our students and their co-workers when encountering an emergency situation.
Thank you for your understanding and support as we work to ensure our community remains safe.
If you have any questions about how we prepare for emergencies on campus, please contact Lausanne Security.