SDSU Police Host Active Shooter Training
The workshop prepared staff from SDSU and other Southern California universities to offer life-saving training to students.
San Diego State University now has more A.L.I.C.E.(Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) trainers on staff thanks to the active shooter response training certificate program held on campus last week for law enforcement, school administrators, residence hall staff and safety personnel.
The two-day workshop was led by Response Options, a critical incident response company specializing in active shooter and violent intruder events.
The workshop, held last week at Olmeca Residence Hall on SDSU’s campus, included classroom training as well as several active scenarios where participants practiced A.L.I.C.E. techniques with an “armed” gunman.
A.L.I.C.E. on campus
“Our goal is to get people to start thinking about these kinds of incidents before they happen,” said SDSU Police Captain Lamine Secka. “If the first time they think about it is when it happens, it’s too late.”
SDSU offered free A.L.I.C.E. training workshops to the university community since 2008. Through the program, nearly 3,000 students, faculty, staff and community members have learned basic techniques to proactively respond in the face of an active shooter situation.
Secka said SDSU will begin offering mandatory training to all incoming freshmen this fall.
It's all about options
“What has been taught in the past has been proven not to work, far too often,” said Kerry Harris, training specialist from Response Options, who led the training.
“While hiding in a corner, or under a desk is a simple answer; sadly, it makes people an easy target for an intruder intent on killing. This training gives people options to help them survive one of these tragic situations.”
SDSU Police, as well as residence hall staff, attended the training to meet the increased demand for certified A.L.I.C.E. trainers on campus.Participants also included police officers and public safety personnel from:
- University of California, San Diego
- University of San Diego
- Cal State University Los Angeles
- Cal State University Bakersfield
“At the end of the day you never know who is going to come onto campus, and I think it’s better to be safe than sorry,” said Jenna Hazelton an academic coordinator for SDSU residence halls who participated in the training. “We do fire drills all the time, but we never prepare for something like this. Thinking of it that way really put it in perspective for me.”
More information
A.L.I.C.E. Training is available for free to individuals and groups on campus. For more information, call the SDSU Police Department at 619-594-1991.
Active Shooter Training
