On March 29, students, teachers and staff faced an active shooter threat. It was later found out to be a hoax call from a California number. On April 6, the district operated on a two hour delay in order for a debriefing about March 29 events. 

“In the debriefing, we had representatives from the Altoona Police Department and Logan Township; both of their chiefs were here. Essentially, they walked everyone through the timeline of events from the time that the phone call was made to the 911 Center, how the police responded, what [the police’s] role was and what they were doing during that time,” head principal Andrew Neely said.

Although the only advertised debriefing was on April 6, there were multiple others that were held.

“There’s a bunch of different levels of debriefing that go on after a situation like March 29. There’s an immediate debrief that happened the same day. There’s the debrief that happened the next morning and then we had the big debrief with the whole district. We also had a  first responders debrief with all the other agencies in the community,” AASD polics officer John McFalls said. 

To prepare for situations like March 29, the security department trains for an active shooter response and Rescue Task Force procedure, which includes taking care of casualties while the event is still taking place.

Neely was pleased and appreciative of police department response and timeliness. Within a minute of the call, police were on the scene. Within ten minutes of the call, there were almost 80 police officers on the high school campus. 

“I think everyone from our police department, the local Altoona police and Logan Township handled it very, very well. There was no indecisiveness,” Neely said. “They were ready to act if they needed to. The students and our teachers were phenomenal. That’s one of the big things the outside organizations and outside police departments stated. They were super impressed by how clear and quiet the hallways were. There wasn’t mass confusion or mass panic. Everyone was where they needed to be waiting for further instructions if we needed to do whatever it was to act on.”

Neely stayed calm through a majority of the lockdown, but he wished he would have been able to do more. 

“The hardest part for me was there was a period of maybe five or 10 minutes where we didn’t know if it was real or not. I was watching as all of these police officers were coming into the school. My role in those scenarios is I’m the person that’s pushing information to either the police department, the teachers or whoever is here to help. So I’m not out there trying to look for it or or go take care of it, which is hard because I want to do everything I can. But I know my role is not to be a police officer in that situation; my role is to help coordinate. I felt I was limited in what I was doing, and there was a moment where I wished I could be doing more, but that’s why we have professionals. It probably was very similar to what most of the teachers felt. Maybe not quite as bad because I think for teachers it’s hard because you really don’t have anything to act on until you’re given information,” Neely said. 

Since the lockdown, there have been a few changes in order to help make things easier and faster for all people involved. 

“One of the things that we’re going to make sure of is that we have a place where, when law enforcement has to come in in an emergency situation, they can grab a set of keys that open up all doors. It took a little bit longer than we would have liked. Once we realized that the people needed keys that weren’t school district people, it took a little longer than we would have liked,” Neely said. 

Although March 29 was a hoax, it helped the administration see where improvements may be needed. 

“One of the big things was making sure that folks that are in spots that aren’t the best secure-wise, there’s an alternate plan for a lockdown for those kids. Also, one of my big things is reinforcing with the staff and the teachers what their role is in these situations, which is to keep students as calm as possible because panic is the worst thing you can have if something were to happen for real. I wanted to reassure them that they understood that if there had been something happening and we would know exactly where it was, I would have been putting out information via either the loudspeaker intercom system or, if I couldn’t do that, via email so they knew when they had to evacuate and would have had more information make a decision,” Neely said. 

McFalls and the security team also know there is room for improvement. Some have already been installed.

“There are some software issues that we need to update within the camera systems. It’s good that we have the ‘Safe Schools Quick Guide” so students know exactly what to expect,” McFalls said.

Neely understands there are difficulties with the window classrooms, such as the journalism room, and there are plans in place in case a situation like March 29 would happen again. 

“They aren’t easy rooms to hide in because of all the glass. Students and teachers in those rooms, if a lockdown was called, would move to a different location, if at all possible. That’s not the only space that’s like that. There’s a few others like that. Making sure that people understand and have the teachers who are in charge know they can move kids to a safer location [is crucial],” Neely said. 

As an example, Neely explained that students in room B130 would leave the room and get to the conference rooms or the attendance office. 

Neely was amazed and proud of how everyone in the building handled the situation on March 29. 

“I thank all the students for how they handled the situation. The response by the students was exactly what it needed to be, and it was amazing. The same is true for teachers. Our teaching staff was amazing that day. I can’t say enough about that response and how proud I was of everyone. Students, staff, teachers, everyone. I want everyone to know that there’s not a single person in the administrative world here at the school and the school district that doesn’t take safety and security seriously. I think our response is a testament to that. At the same time though, everything wasn’t 100% perfect but that gives us an opportunity to grow” Neely said.