A scheduled “Clear the Halls” drill was held Thursday, September 5th.  This is the term we use for lockdown procedures.  The teachers taught all of the students what the protocols and the expectations are for “Clear the Halls” last week.  The Hartford Fire Department and the Hartford Police Department helped us monitor and assess how the drill went.  The students did exactly what they were instructed to do and the drill went very smoothly.    I encourage you to discuss the drill with your child, ask him or her how it went and address any questions or worries that she or he has.  Please let us know if your child is feeling particularly anxious about these drills and we’ll work with you to support your child.

We will have both fire drills and Clear the Halls drills throughout the year.  Additionally, we will practice an evacuation drill within the next month.  Should the need arise, the HPD and or HFD will notify the school to evacuate students and staff to Dancers’ Corner.  From there, students and staff will be relocated by buses to an alternative site.  The site will be determined by the HPD and HFD, based on the nature of the event.  Superintendent DeBalsi will use the Alert Now system to notify you if we are required to evacuate the building for any reason.