BARROW COUNTY, GA — In Barrow County, a multi-agency training exercise was conducted at Holsenbeck Elementary School on Friday morning.

The training exercise was held during a scheduled teacher planning day.

Nicole Vallus with the Barrow County School System says the exercise is being done to help the city, county, and school system be better prepared in the event of an emergency.

Vallus said they hope to see how the different departments will work together, as well as with the outside agencies and the school staff as well. “They are able to see what would happen in the event of any kind of emergency,” Vallus said.

She says the goal is to expand the training program, or at least videos on emergency preparedness, to other schools within the district.

“When we did it in March of 2024 before the incident, and after, it did help to know better how to better respond and how to work together,” Vallus said. “The goal is also to get a video together so that way we can share it with staff for training purposes. For the staff who have not yet experienced this kind of training in their schools.

These training exercises and programs are not unwarranted as parents concerns about school safety have increased.

The latest Gallup poll showed more than 40% of parents are concerned for their kid’s physical safety at school.

The survey was conducted before Wednesday’s shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school that killed two children and injured others.

“Collaboration in training leads to unity in crisis. Strong relationships between schools and public safety are the cornerstone of community protection,” said Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith.

The findings show that concerns about school safety have not been this high since March 2001.