CAMBRIDGE - School safety was the theme Aug. 17 as almost 100 new and recently hired Dorchester County Public Schools staff spent time learning and practicing the ALICE program. ALICE stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate, a strategy which trains participants in making split-second decisions that increase survival of staff and students in active shooter or violent intruder situations.

The training involved lectures as well as active participation in shooter scenarios.

“ALICE training, along with our Weapons Detection Systems, forms the foundation of our school safety measures,” a statement from DCPS said. “We thank our law enforcement partners for their support with ALICE training in DCPS, which will continue throughout the school year for both staff and students, in age-appropriate ways.”

County law enforcement agencies participating in the exercise were the Cambridge and Hurlock police departments, and the Dorchester Sheriff’s Office. The event was the schools’ largest ever of its kind.