TxSSC

About the Active Threat for Schools Annex

The Active Threat for Schools Annex provides comprehensive guidelines and strategies to help school districts prepare for, respond to, and recover from an active threat incident. This annex outlines critical roles, responsibilities, and coordination efforts between school personnel, local law enforcement, local emergency management, and emergency responders, ensuring a unified and efficient approach to managing potential threats. By incorporating key considerations, training resources, and emergency response protocols, it aims to enhance school safety and security to safeguard the well-being of students, staff, and the community.

About the K-12 Active Threat Tabletop Exercise

The Active Threat for Schools tabletop exercise (8 hours), developed in collaboration with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), offers Texas K-12 school districts an opportunity to test and strengthen their response plans in a simulated active threat scenario. A separate junior college tabletop exercise has been developed for junior colleges that will take place at the Texas Community College Safety Summit, November 17-18, 2025, at McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas. Please be on the lookout for registration details in the coming months.

This exercise is designed to align with the Active Threat for Schools Annex, allowing districts to evaluate their preparedness, coordination, and decision-making processes. By engaging in this discussion-based exercise and hands-on training, districts can identify key considerations, areas for improvement, enhance collaboration with local responders, and refine their emergency procedures to ensure the safety and security of students and staff.

The Active Threat tabletop exercise is designed to foster collaboration across all disciplines to effectively manage an active threat situation and ensure coordinated response efforts. For a district to attend the exercise, the superintendent or their EOP delegate is required to register and attend, as the lead district representative. The superintendent or their EOP delegate are strongly encouraged to bring with them key members from the list below. Personnel from the list below will be required to attest to which district they are representing when they register online.

There will be no on-site registration

1. REQUIRED: Superintendent or their EOP delegate who is responsible for district-wide safety and security.
2. District Emergency Response Staff – ISD police, guardians, marshals, and security officers.
3. Responding Law Enforcement – Local police, constable, county sheriff, and other agencies that have been identified in your Basic Plan as a responding law enforcement agency.
4. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) – Paramedics and medical response teams.
5. Local Fire Departments – Firefighters and rescue personnel.
6. Local Health Agencies – City or county health officials and coordinating hospital personnel.
7. Local Emergency Management – Representatives from local or regional emergency management agencies.

In addition to the Active Threat for Schools Annex, key personnel should bring the following:

1. Current Emergency Operations Plans – Paper or digital copy of your district’s Basic Plan, Active Threat for Schools Annex and any other annex, support, or hazard planning documentation regarding active threat.
2. Incident Command Structure – Documentation outlining roles, responsibilities, and chain of command during an emergency incident, e.g., Basic Plan.
3. School Safety and Security Protocols – Any existing safety and security procedures or protocols specific to campus safety, including lockdown measures.