School Lockdown Procedure

In partnership with Wakefield Police, the Wakefield Public Schools plans to adopt a new strategy for school lockdown known as A.L.I.C.E. A.L.I.C.E. is an acronym for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate and is a more sophisticated and enhanced approach to school lockdowns. The philosophy of A.L.I.C.E. is to use technology and information in a way so that staff and students can make informed decisions. In a crisis, this program recommends removing as many people as possible from the danger zone, and provides realistic training so that those involved in a crisis have a better chance of surviving.

Currently, our lockdown procedures call for staff to lock doors, move students to hidden areas of a classroom and to remain quiet until clearance is given. From the tragic school events across the country, we have learned that this guidance will leave our staff and students more vulnerable in the event of an intruder. A.L.I.C.E. represents a new way of thinking to enhance student safety during a critical incident.

It is our intention to train staff and students in this approach across the District over the next two years. In consultation with Wakefield Police, we plan to begin implementation with Wakefield High School this fall followed by our remaining schools.

We have presented our plans to implement A.L.I.C.E. with the community. Please view the presentation and the questions/answer session that followed in the video below.