Although nobody enjoys talking about an armed intruder situation, deadly incidents that have occurred throughout the country prove that the subject demands attention. This year, the Baldwin-Whitehall School District transitioned from its previous policy on lockdowns to a strategy that gives teachers and students more options.

In the traditional lockdown drills of previous years, teachers would close, lock, and block off their classroom doors. Students would hide under their desks or in a corner of the classroom away from the door.

This old approach was comforting in a way, since it was simple to follow the procedure.  In reality, though, safety experts nationwide have realized that this approach essentially leaves everyone in the room a sitting duck for a gunman who could shoot his way past the door.

Because of this, the district this year implemented a new approach called ALiCE, which stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate. The ALiCE strategy is a more active approach to dealing with an active intruder, giving teachers and students many more options.

Teachers and students are encouraged to evaluate their situation based the location of the intruder and the distance to the nearest exit, and evacuate the building if it will provide a greater chance of survival. They also may barricade themselves in the room, but rather than hiding under desks, they are encouraged to fight back against any intruder who enters, throwing objects, making noise, and moving around to create a distraction.

Although these incidents are unsettling to think about, the general consensus among students is that ALiCE is a much better alternative to the previous lockdown approach. The district should be commended for enacting this system.