Emergency Response and Threat Assessment

ALICE

VBPS uses A.L.I.C.E. as our intruder response plan. Our goal in an active situation is to maximize survival with the objective to escape from harm, get law enforcement on the scene quickly, decide and act, and interrupt the intruder’s decision action cycle. 

It isn’t enough to lock the building and keep students inside if someone is threatening them. Traditionally, schools have used a procedure known as “lockdown” which means locking the school building and classrooms and having students and teachers take shelter in their classrooms. We believe that offering additional age-appropriate options will allow our students and teachers to be better prepared if a crisis situation occurs. Providing a constant flow of information to everyone inside the building can allow opportunities to safely evacuate the building. Rescue by the police can take some time. An important goal of the ALICE program is to evacuate as many people as possible to a safe place.

What is ALICE?

Individualized decision-making options in response to immediate threat with consideration to age and ability

ALICE is an acronym that stands for:

  • ALERT:

    • Get the word out that a threat exists

  • LOCKDOWN:

    • Secure a place to stay as much as possible as a starting point to buy time.

    • Barricade if necessary, move to a safe spot with escape in mind.

  • INFORM:

    • Give constant, real-time information throughout the building using all available technology.

    • Communication keeps the shooter off balance.

  • COUNTER:

    • Apply skills to distract, confuse, and gain control by using noise, movement, distance, and distractions.

    • This is the last resort. Individuals are unable to escape. Countering may be as simple as creating a distraction to allow opportunities to escape.

  • EVACUATE:

    • To reduce the number of potential targets for the shooter and reduce the chances of victims resulting from friendly fire when help arrives.

    • Take advantage of time and distance from the threat.

    • The goal is to move students out of the danger zone.

    • It’s important to be prepared to escape.

Alice