Program Goals

Our goal is to provide safe and secure schools where all students, staff, and visitors thrive in a comfortable, welcoming environment.

Mitigation Component

• Licensed Peace Officers assigned to all campuses.

• Security vestibules and secure main entrances at all campuses.

• Visitors present identification and are screened through the Raptor system.

• Card access doors to provide controlled access to all facilities.

• Video surveillance at all facilities. Over 2,500 cameras are deployed across GPISD.

• Conducting safety and security audits as required by the Texas Education Code and in compliance with the Texas School Safety Center Recommendations

• A school safety and security committee comprised of local stakeholders that reviews compliance and offers recommendations to enhance security and safety.

Preparedness Component

• Multi-hazard district and campus emergency operations plans tailored to each campus's specific needs.

• Drills in accordance with the Governor's Round Table recommendations and the standards of the Texas School Safety Center.

• All Standard Response Protocols - Evacuation, Reverse Evacuation, Lockout-Lockdown, Shelter In Place - once each semester.

• Tabletop drills are conducted at each campus.

• Intruder drills are conducted at all facilities.

• Coordination with federal, state, and local authorities and first responders.

• Participation in the Galena Park Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), the North Channel LEPC, andthe  Greater Houston LEPC.

• District and campus-level emergency equipment and supplies.

• Mutual-aid, inter-local, and other agreements to support comprehensive emergency preparedness.

Response Component

• Implementation of Standard Response Protocol, e.g., Lockdown, Lockout, Evacuation, Hold, and Shelter-in-Place. 

• Use of Incident Command System (ICS).

• All campus administrators and key district administrators are trained in the National Incident Management System.

• Blackboard Parentlink Portal for mass notification.

• Collaboration with local first responders.  

Recovery Component

• Plans for the emotional and physical health of students and staff after an incident.

• After-action reviews and corrective action plans are required after each drill/incident.

• Continuity of operation planning to continue essential school/district functions during and after an incident. 

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Galena Park ISD contracts with the Harris County Constables in Precincts 2 and 3 for 43 full-time officers to patrol our schools and the surrounding areas. Two deputies are assigned to the K-9 Units. Every campus in Galena Park ISD has a full-time deputy assigned. In addition to officers who work in schools, the district also uses constable deputies to enforce truancy laws and improve attendance throughout the district. One of the programs the district uses is A.S.A.P., the Assisting Student Attendance Program.

Truancy and Dropout Prevention

As part of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities initiative, Galena Park ISD's Truancy/Dropout Prevention program aims to increase students' attachment to school and help them overcome personal and family barriers to attendance. Campus Truancy/dropout clerks combined with Campus Attendance clerks, Counselors, and Administrators, as well as the PEP Self-Sufficiency Specialist, and Early Head Start Family Specialists collaborate and corroborate with the students, parents, other school staff, and the community at large to provide students with additional supports for attendance, such as outside counseling, health care, assistance from social services professionals, prenatal and child care, transportation, clothing, etc. Through Health and Intervention Services, truancy/dropout clerks receive training and guidance to assist students who are chronically absent and at risk of dropping out. The truancy/dropout clerks, having a close relationship with parents, provide information such as the following:

• The consequences of truancy (for students, educationally and legally;
• The consequence for families may be legal liability and economic sanctions.
• Ways to communicate realistic expectations about school achievement and respect for school and educators;
• Signs of children's disengagement from school;
• Strategies for getting children to school.

In monthly meetings, truancy clerks review goals, objectives, and barriers to managing student attendance. Attendance clerks are familiar with best practices for student attendance accounting, as recommended by the Region IV Education Service Center's PEIMS staff. Four secondary schools offer this service.

Program Components

• Truancy and Dropout Prevention
• Staff Development
• Mediation

Galena Park ISD's Truancy/Dropout Prevention program is designed to enhance students’ connection to school and help them overcome personal and family challenges that affect their attendance. The program involves collaboration among Campus Truancy and Attendance Clerks, Counselors, Administrators, the PEP Self-Sufficiency Specialist, and Early Head Start Family Specialists. Together, they work with students, parents, school staff, and the community to provide additional support for attendance, including counseling, healthcare, social services, prenatal and childcare, transportation, clothing, and more.

Through Health and Intervention Services, truancy and dropout clerks receive training and guidance to help students who are chronically absent and at risk of dropping out. These clerks maintain close relationships with parents and provide essential information, including:

• The educational and legal consequences of truancy for students.
• The potential legal liability and economic sanctions that families may face.
• Effective communication strategies to set realistic expectations about school achievement and respect for educators.
• Signs indicating that children are disengaged from school.
• Strategies to encourage children to attend school.
• During monthly meetings, truancy clerks review goals, objectives, and barriers related to managing student attendance. 

District Truancy Program 

Attendance Matters

At Galena Park ISD campuses, safety is our highest priority. To ensure preparedness for emergencies, all campuses conduct Standard Response Protocol (SRP) drills twice a year and monthly fire drills. 

The SRP, developed by the “I Love U Guys” Foundation, provides a uniform, planned, and practiced response to various incidents. It is action-based, easy to understand, and designed to support all-hazard crisis response. The five key actions practiced in SRP drills are:

Hold: “In Your Room or Area”. Used when hallways must remain clear.

Secure: “Get Inside. Lock Outside Doors.” Used to safeguard people within the building from an external threat. 

Lockdown: “Locks, Lights, Out of Sight”. Used to secure individual rooms and keep occupants quiet and out of sight during an internal threat.

Evacuate: To a designated location: Used to move people from one location to another, either inside or outside the building. 

Shelter: State the hazard and safety strategy: Used for group and personal protection during events such as severe weather or hazardous materials incidents. 

Standard Response Protocol Document

• Keep'em Safe Texas
• FBI
• Texas Statutes

As of August 26, 2018, all school districts are subject to the Commissioner’s new rules regarding the removal of a disruptive person from a campus. More information regarding this new rule can be found in Chapter 37, Section 37.105 of the Texas Education Code, which addresses: Unauthorized Persons, Refusal of Entry, Ejection, and Identification.

Per 19 Texas Administrative Code § 103.1207, you may appeal an ejection from a District campus by filing a grievance under the following Board Policies: DGBA (LOCAL), FNG (LOCAL), or GF (LOCAL).

The number one priority for Galena Park ISD is the safety and security of our students and staff. We take the responsibility of providing safe learning environments very seriously. The primary change for the 2020-2021 school year is that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we regret that we are unable to welcome school volunteers on campuses. This change is temporary and is in effect until further notice. We made this difficult decision in order to limit our students' exposure to others as much as possible, as keeping our students and their families safe is one of our top priorities.

We will continue our practice of conducting unannounced, random metal detector searches of students at our schools throughout the 2020-2021 school year. 

If a student is in possession of a prohibited item, the item will be confiscated, the parent will be contacted, and the appropriate Code of Conduct disciplinary measures will be followed. If warranted, the campus law enforcement team will also be notified of the situation.

Please know we will continue to conduct state-mandated drills throughout the school year to ensure each student and staff member is safe and knows what to do in the event of an emergency.

Please talk to your child(ren) about school safety and have them report anything that appears concerning or suspicious to any adult on campus. It is also very important to remind your child(ren) not to open the building's exterior doors for anyone.

Thank you for your support as we work together to provide a safe learning environment for our students and staff.

Q: Why has this policy been adopted?

A: In Galena Park ISD, we are committed to providing a safe and secure learning environment for our students and staff. Safety and security policies and procedures are reviewed and evaluated each year for improvement. Recently passed Senate Bill 11 further mandates that school districts establish procedures to ensure best practices are used to improve school safety and school climate.

Q: What is this process going to look like?

A: Students will be asked to pass through a walk-through metal detector.

Q: Who will be conducting the random searches?

A: Trained district staff will conduct all random searches.

Q: What items will students need to remove from their pockets or clothing before walking through the metal detectors?

A: All items need to be removed from pockets, including keys, cell phones, and wallets. Students may hold those items in their hands as they pass through the metal detector. (NOTE: Bags, backpacks, and purses are all subject to inspection during a random search.)

Q: Will students have to remove shoes, or other items, including belts, jewelry, hair clips, etc.?

A: Students will not have to remove those items.

Q: If a student uses a wheelchair, scooter, walker, or another assistive device, will that student have to pass through the metal detector?

A: Students with disabilities or assistive devices may be screened with a hand-held metal detector instead of utilizing the walk-through metal detector.

Q: What happens if the metal detector alerts as a student passes through?

A: That student will be asked if he or she has any metal objects still on his or her person that need to be removed from his or her clothing and will pass through the metal detector a second time. If the metal detector alerts a second time, the student will be searched with a hand-held metal detector.

Q: What happens if an unapproved or illegal item is discovered during a random search?

A: The student code of conduct will be enforced, and campus law enforcement will be notified as appropriate.

• January 29, 2026
• July 29, 2025
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• February 18, 2025
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• August 2, 2023

• May 20, 2025
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• January 17, 2024

Get involved. Be heard.

Citizens are encouraged to attend Safety and Security Committee meetings and take an active role in the community. Those who wish to address the Committee may do so during regular sch3eduled meetings.

Citizen Participation Request at Regular School Safety and Security Committee Meetings

• The Committee must allow every person who wishes to address the board on an agenda item to do so during or before the committee's consideration of the item;
• The Committee must allow public comments before or during the committee's consideration of the item;
• The Committee may establish reasonable rules for public comments, including rules that limit the total time a member of the public can address the committee on a given item;
• The Committee may not prohibit public criticism of the committee, including criticism of any act, omission, policy, procedures, program, or service, and
• If the Committee adopts rules limiting the amount of time a member of the public may have to address the committee but does not use simultaneous translation equipment in a manner that allows the board to hear the translated public testimony simultaneously, then the committee must provide at least twice the amount of time for non-English speakers who need a translator.

Public Comments

Citizens are encouraged to attend  Safety and Security Committee meetings and take an active role in the community. Those who wish to address the Committee may do so during regular meetings.

Public Comment Request at Board Meetings

If you have a concern, the best place to begin is with those directly involved, usually at the specific school -- with the teacher and/or principal. Most problems or concerns can be quickly resolved at the campus level.

Public participation at  Safety and Security Committee meetings is limited to the designated "Public Comments" portion of the meeting. Anyone wishing to participate in this portion of the meeting shall present a completed Public Comment Request Form to the  Safety and Security Committee Chairman's Designee prior to the beginning of the meeting and shall indicate the topic about which they wish to speak. At all other times, the audience shall not enter into discussion or debate on matters under consideration by the Safety and Security Committee.

Procedures regarding Citizen Participation at a Safety and Security Committee meeting are disclosed to you. They are as follows:

• Public Comments are limited to the audience items portion of the meeting. 
• Persons who wish to participate in this portion must sign up with the Chairman's designee before the meeting begins and shall include the topic they wish to speak about. 
• No presentation shall exceed three minutes. 
• Delegations of more than three persons shall appoint one person to present their views; 
• The  Safety and Security Committee will not entertain comments concerning:
  • Individual personnel or students; Presentations may not use the name of, or address the character of any student, staff, or Committee member;
  • Complaints or concerns that are covered by other policies;
• The Committee will not take any action on items presented under Public Comments; and 
• Reasonable restraints on the number, length, and frequency of presentations are permissible.