It's back to school on Monday for the rest of the Bay area, but one school district isn't just prepping for class.
- Pasco County Schools changing emergency protocols
- Teachers, staff, students trained for active shooter scenario
- Sheriff Chris Nocco: "We have to have that plan in place."
Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco worked with Pasco County Schools to update emergency plans in case of an active shooter situation at any of the district's campuses.
"It's sad that in the world we live in, we have to do this, but we do," Nocco said. "We absolutely know that the worst case will happen in the U.S. again, and we're preparing right now in Pasco."
Teachers and staff have trained in new procedures. The biggest change is getting rid of the lockdown procedure that Pasco County sed for years. Now, there will be several options during an emergency, including one that has students escape campus to try and find safety.
"If kids can run and get out of the building, why would we not want to keep that many more kids safe?" said Kurt Browning, superintendent of Pasco County Schools.
One of the new training videos for students showed the procedures spelled out like A-B-C.
In the video, the narrator says "A stands for alert and avoid. B stands for barricade and lockdown. C stands for counter."
Officials also know that some parents might not be crazy about their students being part of the training.
"We understand this is uncomfortable for some parents, but at the same time in the world we live in, we have to be realistic. We have to have that plan in place," Nocco said.
Browning said this is the first time in years the school district has changed its emergency plans.