In response to several incidents that have taken place on school campuses nationwide over the past year, the Cy-Fair ISD police department engaged in specialized emergency training in preparation for the 2013–14 school year.

The training style is known as ALERRT—or Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training—and was developed after the 1998 Columbine shootings.

"The training evolved so that every officer is prepared to respond if there is an active shooter and lives are in danger," said CFISD police Chief Alan Bragg. "Officers are being trained to know what to do, even if you're the only responder, to take it upon yourself to go in."

The training, which took place in a roped off wing of Cy-Fair High School over the summer, involved practicing different scenarios, including what to do if an officer goes down. Bragg said he hopes the district never experiences an incident that would require officers to use this training, but he said he feels more confident in the department's ability to handle emergency situations if they do come up.

The department has 62 trained police officers and seven security officers from before the department was established in January 2012. Bragg said 21 new officers will join the force this year, 11 of whom will be dedicated to elementary schools.

"We wanted to be prepared to assign one officer to a geographic zone with responsibility for four or five elementary schools each," he said. "It gives them an opportunity to be at those campuses once in the morning and afternoon and have some presence for the parents—be available to answer questions, do programs for the kids and build relationships."

Two officers are assigned to each of the 10 high schools. One police or security officer each is assigned to 15 of the 17 middle schools. The remaining two middle schools are on triplex campuses and will be under the supervision of officers assigned to cover the triplex, Bragg said.

Being able to assign one officer to each campus allows officers to build relationships with students, Bragg said.

"In some cases it's almost like a counselor or a mentor," he said. "Kids can go to their pastor or teacher if they need someone to talk to. This is just one more person they can go to if they need advice."

Additionally, the department's headquarters is undergoing an expansion that will allow future training exercises to be conducted on site. Bragg must first apply with the Texas Commission of Law Enforcement, which will visit the department's headquarters to perform an audit.

The expansion will yield larger training and communications rooms, as well as a library, study room and processing center for offenders. Bragg hopes to have all construction complete by February.

"We could pass now, but instead of having [TCLE] come do an audit now and then come back after the expansion, we decided to just hold off and let them sign off on it when it's all done," he said.

Being able to conduct training in-house has multiple benefits, Bragg said.

"It will save the district a lot of money in not having to send officers to other locations for training, and we'll still have them available here in the district if something happens," he said.