With the support of the Prosper Police Department,  district officials maintain procedures to protect the safety of its students in case of a school emergency.

Officers Emily Flohr and Cary Noiel are currently stationed at Prosper High School.

“Unfortunately, there’s evil out there,” Flohr said. “We’re never going to be perfect, but all these policies are us doing the best we can because we’ve seen what happens when you don’t have (them).”

The community has a standard response protocol, which includes hold, secure, lock down, evacuation and shelter.

“Standard response and continuity amongst everybody is the big thing in school safety really all over the country,” Flohr said. “We need to all be on the same page when it comes to certain things.” 

In a hold, students remain in their classes while hallways stay clear to allow specialized personel to move around the building without interference.

“I love going to school every day knowing that I’m safe,” junior Avarie Gotcher said. “I feel protected by those around me.”

No one is allowed to enter or exit the school during a secure, but classes continue in case there is an emergency in the vicinity.

“We are trained and alert,” Flohr said. “If something’s happening, we’re gonna go in and stop the threat to make sure y’all are okay. We just would appreciate the cooperation with the students so that we can have a good, safe year.”

A lock down focuses on locks, lights, and out of sight. During the drill, students should stay away from windows for optimized safety.

“We want to make it known to anybody around here,” Flohr said. “Or, you know, the students and everyone knows (when) Prosper High School is locked down.”

In an evacuation, students will exit the school and move to a designated location in the case of a fire.

“If everyone is on the same page and doing the same thing and not having that leniency,” Flohr said. “That’s where we can save more lives, and we can be better prepared.”

Drills are executed every semester to allow safe movement while preparing students for real situations.

“I feel like emergency procedures are effective because they prepare us for dangerous situations,” freshman Callaway Powers said. “If something were to happen, we would be more prepared because we practiced them.”

Depending on the natural disaster, shelter drills could take place in numerous locations, including sealing the room, evacuating to a designated safe area, reaching higher ground or hiding under desks.

“We are constantly doing training on how to react,” Flohr said. “When something is really scary, and your adrenaline’s going, you have that fight or flight reaction.”

Flohr and Noiel work together to both protect and guide students in daily circumstances and emergency situations.

“We’re here for the bigger picture and the safety and everything,” Noiel said. “Just, (for) you know, consistency.”

With being an officer in the district for five years, Cary Noiel has served two of those at PHS.

“We concentrate and we train as much as we do to make sure that if that stuff was to happen,” Noiel said, “We would be able to address and handle the situation appropriately.”

Flohr started working at this campus in July and has spent 13 years in law enforcement.

“We take it seriously,” Flohr said. “We love interacting with y’all and, like, you know, making sure everyone’s behaving themselves, but our main objective is to keep you guys safe.”

The officers say students shouldn’t open campus doors during school hours to allow a safer environment.

“If you’re showing up late, just come in through the front,” Noiel said. “Come in that way, so that way, there aren’t multiple doors open, and there’s not different or multiple people coming in who you may or may not think is a student. And, you know, just stay consistent with that.”

The officers requested that all students and staff stay on a “see something, say something” basis.

“It takes a village to keep safety,” Noiel said. “It can’t just be me and Officer Flohr, you know, focused on that. It’s going to take everybody to keep everybody safe.”

This article received edits by the Kate Duncan, Victoria Byers and Trisha Panicker