NFPA organized the School Safety, Codes and Security Workshop, which was held in December 2014, to pause and reflect on the trends, concepts and ideas in securing the school environment from acts of violence. How these models interact with or consider the impact on fire, life safety and building codes is unclear. This Workshop attempted to identify and understand the sometimes competing objectives of fire and security safety. United with the expectations of law enforcement and fire department personnel, who often arrive at the height of or just after an event has ended, the Workshop took stock of the current building, life safety and fire codes provisions for egress; how those in the security industry view school safety; how school systems deal with their own internal procedures; and what protocols are or should be in place for the first responder community.
Related information
- School planning best practices (PDF, 191 KB), ASIS International
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School evacuation guidelines (PDF, 67 KB), Minnesota Department of Public Safety
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Locking classroom doors (PDF, 159 KB), Regional Office of Education, Illinois
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Risk management (PDF, 138 KB), ASIS International/RIMS Risk Assessment Standard
- Comprehensive School Safety Guide (PDF, 1.7 MB), Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Minnesota School Safety Center
- School Emergency Response Planning (PDF, 1.5 MB), Gregg Champlin, School Planning & Natural Hazards Specialist, NH Homeland Security and Emergency Management
- NFPA Journal article from September/October 2003 issue - Stay or Go? Should U.S. schools have the option of using a delayed evacuation policy when it comes to fires and fire drills? (PDF, 1.1 MB)