The Socorro Independent School District is more than an educational institution. It’s home to 47,000+ students, 7,000 employees and thousands of families that love and care about Team SISD. It is where we learn, work, live and spend countless hours together.

We experience everything together. Happiness, excitement, sadness, nervousness, joy, appreciation … all the emotions … we feel them together as a team, as a family, as a tight-knit community that takes care of each other, cheers for each other, and is there for each other no matter what.

Family, unity and teamwork has always been at the core of the SISD legacy, and this is why we are All In for Team SISD. We recognize that as we work and live together for the good and benefit of the children in our community – your children, my children, our children – we are connected by the fundamental belief that what we do, what we must do, is in the best interest of our students, our children.

Being All In #TeamSISD is an undeniable relationship we all have with one another in Socorro and our community. Our family members, friends, co-workers, classmates – all of us --we’re connected in a special way that reminds us that as we go about our daily business to seize our opportunities in Team SISD in the end it will benefit us all.

Keeping our students, staff and schools safe and secure remains our number one priority. Team SISD is ALL IN for Safety and works diligently to sustain proactive safety and security measures. With a first-rate police department, dedicated officers and staff members who work and live in the district, keeping students and schools safe is not just a job. It is a familial duty in the tight-knit Team SISD.

It is a commitment that we all have together in our many roles in Team SISD -- teachers, principals, bus drivers, custodians, police officers, counselors, secretaries, cafeteria employees, just to name a few. We’re all in to care for and protect our community.

Team SISD establishes a districtwide culture of emergency preparedness through a team-approach to ensure the safety of students and staff members. The process of continuously practicing school emergency drills allows the district to ensure students and staff are trained to respond to emergencies that may occur. Socorro ISD follows guidelines set forth by the Texas School Safety Center school-based emergency management.

The district’s Director of Emergency Management is charged with overseeing the district’s multi-hazard preparedness activities, plans and practices. In compliance with state law, the district has a comprehensive emergency management program including planning, training, and drilling and a multi-hazard emergency operations plan. The emergency management director is supported by an assistant director, who are both highly qualified with FEMA emergency management and professional development series certifications and working toward advanced professional certification to master Incident Command System and National Incident Management System. 

The SISD Safety and Security Committee, comprised of district personnel, school staff, parents, and first responder stakeholders from the community, meets regularly to focus on districtwide safety and security issues. The committee, which has been established in compliance with state law, is a vital component in the overall safety and security for all stakeholders by providing guidance, coordination, and oversight in multiple facets of SISD’s emergency management plan and ensuring the district is aligned to state standards. The committee’s primary role is to review and refine the district’s emergency operations plan and any report that is submitted to the Texas School Safety Center and the Texas Education Agency.

Each campus has a school administrator on the district safety committee who serves as the emergency management coordinator at their school. SISD schools are trained and practice drills in accordance with the emergency operations plan. Campus staff also practice weekly exterior door sweeps to ensure safe entry to the schools through designated doors only. SISD schools also maintain a campus emergency operations plan that is unique to each campus to address specific needs for that facility. In addition, each school has a behavioral threat assessment team which is aimed at keeping students and staff safe from harmful, violent, or threatening individuals. The multi-disciplinary threat assessment and management team involves an array of disciplines so that the members can identify developing concerns/threats, gather information from multiple sources, maximize skills and resources to address concerns, monitor outcomes and enhance the school’s ability to communicate, collaborate and coordinate for best awareness, interventions, and outcomes.

Socorro ISD follows the Standard Response Protocol (SRP), which provides clear guidance on actions to be taken by all occupants of a facility in the event of crisis. The SRP is designed to provide consistent, clear shared language and a series of actions to be taken by occupants. In the event of an emergency, a specific protocol will be declared and the appropriate direction and action will be followed.

Hold – In your room, office or area. Clear the hall.

Secure – Get inside. Lock outside doors.

Lockdown – Locks, lights, out of sight.

Evacuate – A location may be specified.

Shelter – State hazard and safety strategy.

Click here to read more about Standard Response Protocol

As we care for one another in numerous ways, one of the most important things we do is support social, emotional and mental health. Being there for our students and our staff members with resources, counselors and tools is important to ensure a strong support system for a healthy mindset and well-being.

Social, emotional and mental health support in Team SISD:

• School Counselors – Each campus has a certified school counselor based on ratio.  All elementary campuses have at least one school counselor and more depending on size, all middle and PK-8 Campuses have two school counselors and more depending on size and all comprehensive high schools have a minimum of seven counselors, with two schools having eight and two schools having nine.  School counselors are trained in social emotional learning and mental health, provide social emotional learning lessons to students in grades PK through 12th, and provide counseling to students through group counseling and short-term individual counseling.

• Care Solace – Referral Service to assist students, families, and employees with mental health services.

• Project Vida – We partner with Project Vida Behavioral Health Center.  16 of our campuses (each comprehensive high school, 2 middle schools per feeder and 1 elementary) have an LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor) on site to assist students with mental health needs. 

• Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine (TCHATT) – Provides telemedicine or telehealth programs to school districts to help identified students.

• Partnerships with other outside Behavioral Health Agencies – Outside providers can provide therapy to SISD students on campus or through telehealth.

• Rethink Education – The district Social Emotional and Mental Health Curriculum that encompasses lessons that focus on coping skills and social emotional learning.

Report Bullying – Anonymous Alerts

Team SISD teams up with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to protect schools and the community. Representatives from law enforcement and first responder agencies are part of the District Safety and Security Committee. The SISD Police Department has formed strong partnerships with local law enforcement agencies, such as the El Paso Police Department and the Sheriff’s Department, and constantly works in conjunction with numerous other agencies.

An SISD police officer is assigned to crisis negotiations and SISD detectives also are assigned to the El Paso Fusion Center, an all-crimes, all hazards tactical information and intelligence hub for the El Paso Police Department.

The SISD Police Department worked with the El Paso District Attorney’s Office, FBI and area school district police departments on April 12, 2024, as part of a new “School Threats are No Joke” initiative. Team SISD police officers participated in a video production for an upcoming campaign to remind the community about the serious consequences that can result from school threats, whether they are made as a joke or not. The ongoing collaboration between Team SISD police and local and state law enforcement helps to keep school communities safe and the proactive communication campaigns keeps the public aware of the efforts being made to address and prevent school threats that can disrupt instruction and school activities.

See SISD post about the “School Threats are No Joke” video production

In April 2023, SISD partnered with the FBI, District Attorney, County Attorney, other law enforcement and school districts to curb false threats to schools. The district helped the FBI deliver the critical message to all stakeholders that making false threats will not be taken lightly and can lead to severe consequences.

Read more about the partnership with the FBI campaign

In October 2023, Socorro ISD police arrested two juveniles for making false threats that negatively impacted the community by disrupting instruction at Montwood High School. Socorro ISD Police, together with local law enforcement agencies and the El Paso County and District Attorney offices, collaborated on the cases to ensure that those responsible were identified and held accountable to the law.

Read more about the two juveniles arrested for false threats