ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. (WDRB) -- School officials with Elizabethtown's Independent School District joined emergency responders ahead of the upcoming school year for a Safe School Roundtable on Tuesday.

District principals, law enforcement including Kentucky State Police, Hardin County Sheriff's Office, Elizabethtown Police, a mental health professional, and others gathered at Elizabethtown High School to focus on school safety.

The event included conversations going over roles and logistics, as well as putting those drills into practice.

"I think it’s important we show support to our local school systems, Elizabethtown being one of them. It's also great to be able to partner with local law enforcement such as Hardin County Sheriff's Office and Elizabethtown Police Department," said Trooper Scotty Sharp with Kentucky State Police.

Travis Gay, director of student services at Elizabethtown Independent Schools said this is the second year he's been in this role and brought this roundtable to the district. He said the idea came from his previous work with Adair County Schools, where a similar safety discussion was held.

"The intent is to get together and take a deep dive into all of our school related safety procedures, anything that's new to get ready for the new school year when our kids come back," said Gay.

Gay demonstrated how alerts can be sent to the phones of staff members in the district. That includes things from severe weather to lockdowns. 

"Our big thing today that we've never done is we are actually going to walk through our evacuation and reunification process," Gay said. 

The goal is to give participants an idea of what it would be like to leave the school and reunite students with their parents or guardians in case of an emergency. Gay said principals and others who attended Tuesday can take this knowledge back to their schools to make sure safety plans align with the district. 

"School safety is top priority," said Gay. "In the world we live in, I have kids that attend Elizabethtown Independent School and they're our families' most precious possession and we want to do everything we can to ensure that they have not only a high-quality education, but they're safe."

Chris Denham, an officer with Elizabethtown Police Department, said training like this is invaluable. 

"It's paramount," Denham said. "The first time you do something should not be during a live event. Practice makes perfect, and this is absolutely why we're here today."

Denham said this roundtable is a proactive opportunity for law enforcement to talk with those from the school district and other agencies.

"God forbid something happen that would reach to the level that would require all of our intervention, we're prepared and we know how the other responds," he said. 

Aside from Elizabethtown Independent, Denham also mentioned Hardin County Schools and how that district works to keep safety a priority as well. 

"It’s something that all schools should be prepared for," he said.

Not just Elizabethtown Independent Schools but I really commend Hardin County Schools as well for their efforts. I can say that both school districts here in Hardin County -- both Elizabethtown Independent and Hardin County Schools -- their number one priority obviously is education but to provide a quality education you have to make sure students and staff feels safe. And they both do a wonderful job at that."

In addition to this event, Sharp said Kentucky State Police troopers have been very active in a program called the Safe School Program.

Sharp said troopers go into schools and focus on school security in the case of an active shooter situation. This program is not done with students, only staff members. Sharp said that program is very active and has been around about 10 years.

For a direct link to learn about the Safe School Program, click here.

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