N.J. public schools to have unannounced emergency lockdown drills
Wednesday January 16, 2013, 12:52 PM
BY LESLIE BRODY
STAFF WRITER
The Record
Coming soon to New Jersey public schools: unannounced visits by state safety officials checking to see that schools can do emergency lockdown drills quickly and correctly.
Anthony Bland, coordinator of the New Jersey office of school preparedness and emergency planning, told the state Board of Education Wednesday that in the wake of the horrific massacre in Newtown in December, his team was switching from scheduled visits to schools to unannounced ones to make sure educators can comply with rules for lockdowns and other safety drills.
He said he did not know how many schools would be checked, but expected these visits would begin in February, along with refresher courses for administrators on safety measures.
Bland stressed New Jersey had some of the most aggressive drill requirements in the country, but even so, “we can’t say there are not deficiencies.”