Following a monthly schedule, our schools practice emergency response procedures (drills) during the school year. By New York state public school law, a school is required to conduct eight evacuation drills and four lockdown drills. On top of this, our schools also practice emergency response procedures called Hold-In-Place, Shelter-In-Place, and Lockout. Each school is required to keep a monthly log of the drills that they conduct, and at the end of the school year, they are submitted to Michael Paladino, District Safety Coordinator, for his review. To reinforce these emergency response drills, the district conducts two 'safety weeks' during the school year: first week in October and first week in March.

Yes! Rush-Henrietta has an outstanding relationship with the Monroe County Sheriff's Office. In 2015, we announced, "We are pleased to announce that the long-standing working relationship between the Rush-Henrietta Central School District and Monroe County Sheriff’s Office continues to thrive. Last year, sheriff's deputies began visiting school grounds on a more frequent basis. The deputies visit our schools and district buildings in between calls to increase their visibility on campus and help provide our students with an even safer place to learn and grow. We appreciate the relationships we have built with all first responders in our community, and we thank the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office for its continued efforts to keep our students and staff members safe." The Monroe County Sheriff's Office contacted us during winter 2018, in the aftermath of the Parkland, Florida, shooting, to assure us that this presence will continue throughout our district. If you see a sheriff’s deputy at one of our schools, chances are good that he or she is just visiting. We very much appreciate their efforts in recent years to more visible on our school campus.

Yes, this happens regularly as part of our partnership with local law enforcement. For instance, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office has held training exercises at the Senior High School, Sherman Elementary School, and Vollmer Elementary School. These training sessions can include SWAT teams and road deputies and often last for as long as five hours. We take advantage of the opportunities to not only help them train, but to allow them to gain the invaluable knowledge about the layout of our schools that we pray they will never need. While some districts are reluctant to host law enforcement on their campus for fear that it will send a message to the public that their schools are not safe, we embrace opportunities to welcome them.

Everyone in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District is encouraged to report safety-related concerns by calling the Safety Tip Line at 359-STOP (359-7867). This line is checked regularly. You also may contact district safety officer, Michael Paladino. If your concern is of an imminent nature, please call 911 and the school district's information desk at 359-5000. Thank you for partnering with us to ensure safe and secure learning environments.