Safety and Security

The safety of our students and staff is the top priority at Greenville County Schools. Our district employs professional safety and security personnel, has comprehensive prevention, mitigation, response, and recovery plans, and utilizes safety protocols in all of our schools. We continually work to develop and implement these in partnership with our schools, law enforcement, and the community.

It is standard practice in GCS that any time there is an incidence in our district or a significant event within the country, we review our security plans and our emergency response plans, in general, to see if there is something that may enhance the safety and security of students and staff moving forward.

Ensure your contact information is correct and updated within your Parent Backpack account so you can be reached in an emergency situation. In the event of a school emergency, parents will receive texts, phone calls, or email messages through School Messenger or Backpack. It is extremely important that your phone number and email address are up-to-date. To receive text messages, your phone must be text-capable.

Emergency Compact

• Locked Doors & Ignore the Door: All doors to our schools and buildings remain locked, and we educate students and staff to Ignore the Door and not open if someone outside tries to enter from anywhere other than the main entrance.
• Emergency Plans: GCS employs professional safety and security personnel, has comprehensive prevention, mitigation, response, and recovery plans, and utilizes safety protocols in all schools. It is standard practice in GCS that any time there is an incident locally or a significant event in the country, security and emergency response plans are reviewed.
• Reunification Sites: In the event of an emergency requiring evacuation of a school, GCS has established reunification sites where parents will go to be reunited with their child. Important information, including the name and address of the reunification site, will be communicated to parents through Backpack, School Messenger, and the local media.
• SROs and Law Enforcement: GCS has a strong partnership with local law enforcement that includes an Office of School Enforcement, staffed with Greenville County Sheriff’s Office deputies. There is at least one School Resource Officer (SRO) at each middle and high school and some elementary schools, with Zoned School Patrols and SROs visiting the remaining elementary schools and centers throughout the day. The law enforcement agencies that support our schools are trained for a rapid response to an active threat and to immediately enter and engage the threat.
• Testing Building Security: Law enforcement officers conduct unannounced security breach tests on schools and provide the results to the district. Additionally, the district employs four full-time security specialists who are evaluating security on an ongoing basis.
• Arrival/Dismissal Procedures and Monitoring: Entrances to our buildings are monitored on an ongoing basis and with heightened vigilance during arrival, dismissal, and special events.
• Secure Capture Areas: All school lobbies have secure capture areas to restrict visitor access to the building until cleared for entry.
• Access Control System: The district utilizes an access control system, which requires authorized badges and card readers to access the buildings and allows for that access to be adjusted rapidly as needed.

• Weapons Detection System: GCS started using Evolv weapons detection systems in the 2022-23 school year.  Evolv is mobile and is used to conduct searches on a random rotation during the school day and during events on our campuses. In the 2024-25 school year, students in grades 3-5 began participating in random screenings using the Evolv system.
• Advanced Technology: The district replaced its security camera system with a newer, more advanced system that provides better coverage and higher-resolution images. The new camera system uses cutting-edge AI technology and video analytics to help identify suspicious activity and can alert the appropriate personnel in real time. HALOs, or smart sensors that can alert officials to security threats, are now in all middle and high schools, and the district has installed additional identification card readers to all buildings to improve access security. 
• Raptor Technologies: Greenville County Schools has utilized Raptor Technologies as a partner to screen visitors/volunteers for years. The district has the full Emergency Management Suite from Raptor which includes advanced Alerting, Accountability, Reunification, Drill Management and Behavioral Threat Assessment software. School-level and district personnel also have the Raptor Badge Alert System, which enables them to initiate immediate emergency notifications to the district’s security team and law enforcement if a critical incident occurs. 
• Gaggle: The district utilizes an online system that monitors content, detects potential threats, and activates appropriate response protocols.
• See Something, Say Something: The single most effective preventative tool regarding school safety and security is the See Something, Say Something protocol, which every school in GCS utilizes. It is critically important that if students see or hear something that is concerning, they say something to a trusted adult or report it by clicking the See Something. Say Something graphic.

Security Dispatch: 864-355-1287, 1266, or 1265
Service Center During Business Hours: 864-355-3100

Greg Porter, Director of Security, School Safety, and Emergency Preparedness | 864-355-3390
Dallas Gladson, Assistant Director | 864-355-1088
Dennis Whitehead, Coordinator of Security  | 864-355-7789
Chad Jordan, Security Specialist/Visitor Mgmt/Volunteer Mgmt | 864-355-3588
David Green Crew Chief | 864-385-9136
Jonathan Hannon, Crew Chief | 864-203-9440