Safety Systems in Salem-Keizer Public Schools

Campus Safety Specialists

The district has a strong team of dedicated Campus Safety Specialists who work to not only monitor school campuses for safety concerns, but also to build meaningful relationships with students and staff, which supports overall safety. Campus Safety Specialists are extensively trained in categories such as CPR / First Aid, Epi Pen, Narcan use, Stop the Bleed, drug recognition, gang recognition and workplace violence training.

Field Coordinators

The Safety and Risk Management Team includes a group of Safety Field Coordinators who work alongside Campus Safety Specialists to respond to heightened needs for safety within schools. Field Coordinators oversee school-based security and act as an added layer of security in emergencies. They work as key partners with law enforcement partners during an emergency situation. 

Site Administrators

School administrators play a pivotal role in the district's safety systems. Site admins not only develop supervision plans and strategies specific to their school and students, they act as a key liaison between the district Emergency Operations Center, law enforcement and other key individuals in the case of a school emergency. 

24-Hour Security

As a district, Salem-Keizer Public Schools spans two, cities with more than 80 facilities. To protect and maintain safety of all district facilities, the district works with outside agencies to support 24-hour surveillance and security for the district. 

Our team of specialists partners with agencies across Marion, Polk and Yamhill counties to identify students who may be exhibiting indicators of extreme aggression toward others, and we provide wraparound services like safety planning and mental health support to address those students’ needs.

Salem-Keizer’s behavioral threat assessment system is used nationally by other school districts to identify and prevent escalated behavior. 

Additional Salem-Keizer Cascade Behavioral Threat Assessment System Resources: 

• PBS Newshour: Researchers look for ways to identify young people who are on the ‘pathway to violence’
• NPR: Interview with author examining behavioral patterns

The Salem-Keizer Sexual Incident Response Committee is a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency system designed to prevent student problematic sexual behavior or sexual harm. 

This system provides early intervention when concerning sexual behaviors are present, while focusing on safety planning, inclusion, connection and support to students who are exhibiting problematic sexual behavior and interventions and supports for those who have been impacted by the sexual behavior of other students.

Salem-Keizer’s Crisis Response Team is a highly trained, select group of Salem-Keizer staff responsible for providing immediate support to the identified individual or group experiencing “crisis.” This 24-hour, on-call team is composed mainly of Salem-Keizer School Counselors and School Social Workers but extends to members of the Salem-Keizer Administrative team, nurses and psychologists and community-based emergency response teams when necessary.

Talking to someone about suicide does not increase the risk of suicide. These conversations provide opportunities for connection, support, safety planning, and hope. Salem-Keizer Public Schools has a robust Suicide Prevention Program, including the Question, Persuade, Refer training (or QPR) available to all district staff, the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training for all school counselors, social workers and psychologists and the use of an evidence-based Suicide Prevention Protocol when we have concerns about the safety of individual students. 

Learn more about mental wellness supports

Our children in today’s world have unique emotional and behavioral needs that require intentional support. At Salem-Keizer, we work to address the needs of our students by removing barriers to learning and applying Multi-Tiered Systems of Support. These systems address  social, emotional, behavioral, and academic needs by providing the right support at the right time for every student. 

Tier 1:

Tier 1 interventions are universal and are provided to all students. They include things like ensuring high-quality instruction, teaching school-wide expectations, providing clear and consistent instruction, creating a positive learning environment and progress monitoring.  

Tier 2:

Tier 2 interventions are more intensive and are provided to students who need additional support. They may include things like small group instruction, targeted interventions, social skills lessons and positive behavior support plans.

Tier 3:

Tier 3 interventions are the most intensive and are provided to students who need the highest level of support. They may include things like individual counseling, functional behavior assessments, specialized instruction and specialized programs

Salem-Keizer Public Schools is dedicated to a strong and collaborative relationship with local, state, and national law enforcement and other emergency service agencies to prevent, protect and maintain safety of district students, staff and visitors. The district collaborates with law enforcement regularly, whether to investigate concerns for safety within schools or the community, support on behavioral threat assessments, community awareness initiatives and more.  

The district recognizes the range of needs many students require in order to safely access their education. In partnership with several local and state agencies such as Trillium Family Services, Catholic Community Services, Stronger Oregon, Salem Pastoral Counseling Center, Polk County Behavioral Health and Marion County Children’s Behavioral Health, the district works alongside the community to ensure young people have what they need to succeed in school and life. 

Children's Day Education Center

In September 2023, the Salem-Keizer School Board approved a Memorandum of Understanding to enter into a public-private partnership with Mountain West Investment Corporation-Epping, LLC, to help establish sustainable and adequate behavioral and mental health services for school-aged children in the area. This new center will bring much needed support for youth behavioral and mental health care, without losing access to a high-quality and valuable education. 

In Salem-Keizer schools may be placed in security level, such as a secure alert or a lockdown condition, when there is police activity or suspicious/concerning activity near or at local schools. This is a standard security procedure and is often implemented out of an abundance of caution to keep students, staff and visitors safe. Schools may be placed in a variety levels for a condition, which do not directly correlate to specific incidents. For example, schools may make the decision to place themselves in a level 3 condition regardless of the situation while they gather more information, and deescalate the condition as more information is confirmed. Below, please review information regarding the district’s security levels. 

Secure Alert 

During a secure alert, all students, staff and visitors are to have a heightened sense of awareness and all activities are brought indoors. All school exterior doors and entryways are to remain locked. Instruction and movement throughout the building continues as normal, but the district may bring on additional staff and security to be on campus throughout a secure alert. 

Lockdown Condition 1

During a condition 1 lockdown all activities are brought indoors and students and staff move into designated classrooms.  All school exterior doors and entryways are to remain locked. If possible, instruction continues as normal within classrooms; however all students will not be allowed into hallways and classroom doors, windows and blinds are shut, locked and covered. 

Lockdown Condition 2

During a condition 2 lockdown all activities are brought indoors and students and staff move into designated classrooms.  All school exterior doors and entryways are to remain locked. Instruction will be paused and all students and staff are instructed to “shelter in place” meaning they are to close and lock all doors and windows and cover windows to the extent possible, turn off lights, remain quiet, move to designated safe areas within the room and stay out of view of any windows.

Lockdown Condition 3

During a condition 3 lockdown all activities are brought indoors and students and staff move into designated classrooms. Instruction will be paused and all students and staff are instructed to “shelter in place” meaning they are to close and lock all doors and windows and cover windows to the extent possible, turn off lights, remain quiet, move to designated safe areas within the room and stay out of view of any windows.  In addition doors and entryways throughout the building classrooms will be barricaded. 

In addition, Salem-Keizer Public Schools practices Options-Based Decision-Making and staff are training in staying alert and aware of situational changes that could affect safety and are prepared to determine if other options would be appropriate for the specific situation. 

Every month, students at each Salem-Keizer school practices evacuation and fire drills to maintain safety. Whether an evacuation is needed at a school due to a fire, suspected gas leak or other emergency, students are aware of systems and procedures to keep all safe in the case of an emergency. 

Twice per year, students at each Salem-Keizer school practice earthquake drills to prevent injury and maintain safety in the case of an earthquake or other structural threat to the building.  In our region Oregon is at an increased risk for earthquakes and is why regular drills to know how to respond are a priority for the district. 

For many years, the district’s Safety and Risk Management team has practiced established reunification protocols in a department setting. Starting in 2023, the district launched communitywide efforts to establish annual multiagency reunification exercises. Reunification is the process in which the district and other community agencies including law enforcement, emergency services, medical and mental health providers and more work quickly to safely respond to schools after a major incident and effectively reunify students with their legal guardian and family members.

In May 2018, voters in the Salem-Keizer School District approved a $619.7 million general obligation bond to provide relief for overcrowding, expand access to career and technical (vocational programs), increase safety and security including seismic safety, and protect the community’s investment in district facilities.

Each school, some thanks to improvements under the 2018 Bond, have new redesigned front entryways to establish, which in many schools created secured vestibules, upgraded badge access systems, surveillance cameras and an advance Internal Emergency Broadcast and Lockdown system. 

The Emergency Operations Center, or EOC, is launched whenever there is a potential safety incident or a potential situation that would impact school or district operations. 

The Emergency Operations Center is where the district manages all aspects of an incident. From investigating situations in partnership with law enforcement and other emergency responders to coordinating district transportation and nutrition services, communication to district families, staff and students and much more. In this center, the emergency team has access to advanced technology to secure educational spaces, view in real time and past video footage within schools and work in coordination with emergency partners. 

The EOC features district staff from all areas of the district to ensure well-rounded, informed and coordinated efforts to respond to safety concerns in a system that works alongside school-based teams to allow efforts at the school to be directly focused on student and staff wellbeing. 

In many district schools students have access to spaces throughout their building to support emotional regulation and deescalate when they may feel overwhelmed, stressed or when they feel they just need a "break." These spaces are commonly referred to as "Calm Rooms," "Zen Dens" or "Positive Action Centers." Although unique at each school, these spaces often feature comforting lighting, comfortable seating, reflection activities such as art. Students also work with trusted adults to recognize and name their emotions and use tools together to address their needs. 

These spaces are designed to be a preventative strategy to address student needs before they get to an escalated level that doesn't feel safe for themselves or to others. 

ParentSquare & StudentSquare

As a district, all school, programs, clubs and other school-related activities use ParentSquare to safely and effectively communicate with families and students. All communication between staff, students and families should always occur within the platform. 

ParentSquare is used in emergency situations and all families are notified through the system through email, text and push notification as set in default settings. In the event of a school emergency such as a lockdown or school evacuation, families, staff and if appropriate students will receive updates quickly through ParentSqaure. Information for families about the incident and details to support the safety and well-being of their child will always be shared as soon as possible. 

FlashAlert

In the case of a significant school emergency or school closure, the district will utilize a system called FlashAlert to notify local media quickly about key information to share with the public. You can find all FlashAlert notices from the district online. 

Salem-Keizer Public Schools is an active member of SafeOregon, which gives kids, parents, schools, and community members a confidential way to report safety threats or potential acts of violence. Managed by the Oregon State Police, this program has proven to prevent acts of violence. I encourage you to download the mobile app on your phone, and on your child’s phone as well. You can also call or text 844-472-3367 anytime.