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Emergency Preparedness

Dear Hillview Families,

Prepare

The Menlo Park City School District Policies requires each school site to have their own emergency operations plan, which is updated annually.  It is important for you to know that, in the case of a declared emergency, all students will be required to remain at school or at an alternative safe site under the supervision of District personnel until the regular dismissal time, if it is deemed safe to release students at the time, OR until released to an adult authorized by a parent or legal guardian whose name appears on District records.

 

At the beginning of the school year, every family is required to fill out an emergency ID tag, form 5140.  Only those listed on the form have authority to pick your child from school.   Please take a moment to review the following with regard to emergency procedures at Hillview School:

For your child’s safety:

  • Both children, parents and authorized adults need to know who has is listed on the child’s student emergency ID tag.
  • Only the parent, guardian, or adult listed on the ID tag can sign out children from the Student Release Station at Hilliview before departing from school property. Any adult picking up a student should be prepared to present photo identification.
  • In the case of an emergency, the carpool lane and driveways must be kept clear for emergency vehicles.  It is best for you to park off campus and proceed on foot.
  • Authorized adults must enter Hillivew from the Elder Avenue driveway, not by Santa Cruz Avenue.
  • All students must be signed out through our emergency procedures, in accordance with the state law. Due to the size of our student body, please be patient with staff when following these procedures.
  • Children cannot leave school - on foot, bike, or any other means - until it is considered safe by the administration.
  • Hillview is equipped to take care of students for up to three days with food rations and purified drinking water.
  • It is best NOT to call the school or district in the case of an emergency.  Listen for Public Safety Announcements on Menlo Park’s CA Information Radio Station AM 1670 (WPMW) or watch cable channel 26 (TVKTSF).
  • Cell phone use is discouraged during an emergency as this will tie up airwaves and make cellular phone use void. 
  • Texting may work, but misleading information could be given to parents, which could lead to unnecessary panic.

Hillview has regularly scheduled drills to help students learn the procedures they will follow in the event of an emergency.  Please know that Hillview is dedicated to supplying our staff and students with the knowledge they will need to keep everyone as safe as possible in the event of an emergency.

For more information about emergency preparedness plans, please see the web links below:

  1. SMC Alert and Emergency Preparedness is an alert notification system used to immediately contact you during urgent or emergency situations with useful information and updates by sending text messages to your…
    • email accounts (home, work, school, etc.)
    • cell phones, pagers
    • smartphones/handheld devices
  2. Atherton Police Department is a Atherton-based disaster plan system that will inform you of what to do in case of an emergency.
  3. City of East Palo Alto - Police - Disaster Preparedness is a East Palo Alto-based disaster plan system that will inform you of what to do in case of an emergency.
  4. Menlo Fire District Disaster Preparedness
  5. Governor’s office of Emergency Services
  6. US Department of Homeland Security
  7. American Red Cross