Training session given Thursday afternoon at North Winneshiek on how to deal with a school intruder

Winneshiek County Sheriff's Deputy Tim Felton (center) conducts a training session Thursday at North Winneshiek School

Teachers and staff at North Winneshiek School, along with several Luther College residence hall staff members, received training Thursday afternoon from Winneshiek County Sheriff's Deputy Tim Felton on how to deal with a school intruder.

Felton told the group it's good to be prepared, saying, "We're looking at this as the world we have to deal with."

At one time school officials concentrated on locking down classrooms when an intruder was reported, but the newest research suggests a more varied approach is better.  In Winneshiek County the program is called "ALICE," for "Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate."  The program is divided into five steps, and every step is important.

Alert: Sound an alarm of the situation at hand and call the police.  Information of the situation should be provided by all possible means including the public address system.

Lockdown:  Doors should be locked to provide a time barrier and give students and teachers time to recognize the threat. If they are not in the danger zone, they should evacuate as quickly as possible.

Inform:  If possible keep teachers, students, and the police up-to-date on the shooter's location inside the school.

Counter:  Interrupt the physical act of shooting.  If the shooter walks into a classroom or hall and you have no escape route, start throwing anything and everything you can at him/her to interrupt his/her accuracy. This is a last resort and is a survival process to stay alive.  If the gunman can be overpowered by multiple people after being distracted and hit with items, swarm the shooter and detain him.

Evacuate:  Keep as many people away from the situation as possible.  If during the alert stage or any other stage the students are not near the shooter, students should evacuate as quickly as possible.

Thursday's training included several trainings showing the importance of distracting an intruder who enters a classroom.