Districts and departments in Colorado Springs, CO are required to complete all safety drills within the first three weeks of the school year and quarterly thereafter. This is to guarantee that students, teachers, and staff are prepared for any potential hazards or disasters. Kaufman, who worked for Jefferson County Public Schools in 1999, was one of the first school district officials to arrive at the scene of the Columbine attack. To make drills more realistic, some schools have adjusted the traditional drilling model in various ways.
In some places, such as Jefferson County, lockdown drills start in preschool. The Pikes Peak (Colorado Springs) Regional Emergency Management Office is responsible for providing citizens with mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery and coordination measures in the event of large-scale emergencies and disasters. The Colorado Division of Homeland Security's Emergency Management Division provides leadership and support to Colorado communities to prevent, protect, mitigate, respond to and recover from all dangerous events. The mission of the Colorado School Safety Resource Center is to help educators, emergency response personnel, community organizations, school mental health professionals, parents and students create safe, positive and successful school environments for Colorado students in all preschools and higher education schools.
The Colorado Safe Schools Act of 2000 requires public schools to conduct drills for all hazards “to the extent possible”.While active shooting drills have become commonplace across the country, there are no federal mandates or regulations on exactly how to carry them out. Nevertheless, schools must do their best to make sure that students are adequately prepared for any potential danger or disaster.
