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Gwinnett County Public Schools

Emergency Notifications

The safety of students and employees is a top priority of Gwinnett County Public Schools. GCPS uses a number of communication channels to reach our stakeholders with key information, particularly in emergency situations. In addition to sharing important safety information with our GCPS families, the district also has a mechanism in place for you to report tips or concerns related to safety. 

School Safety Confidential Tip Line... 770-822-6513

If you think that someone is carrying a weapon, drugs, or alcohol on school property, or if you believe that you have been the target of violence or threat of violence, or have witnessed violent or threatening conduct by another person, please call or text the School Safety Tip Line at 770-822-6513. Callers do not have to provide their name.

Emergency Notification System

GCPS works to notify families in a timely manner about schoolwide or districtwide emergencies or campus safety concerns. While letters may be sent home to families of schools affected by a situation, there are times when circumstances require more immediate notification. During these times, information may be posted on the school or school district website, Facebook, and Twitter (@GwinnettSchools) as it becomes available. In addition, GCPS uses ParentSquare to send emergency notifications to families via phone, email, and/or text, using the contact information provided to the school by the parent/guardian. General/non-emergency notifications are sent by email using ParentSquare.

Parents should verify the accuracy of their contact information at the beginning of each school year. They can update this information in the Parent Portal. In addition, if changes to contact information occur during the school year, parents should contact the school office to let staff know of those changes and update via the Portal. This will improve communication throughout the year and ensure that your family will receive messages sent through ParentSquare.

ParentSquare messages from Gwinnett County Public Schools will come from the school or district phone number based on who is sending the message. Please add this phone number to your contacts so you can easily identify the call as coming from the school district.  

Please note that an individual can opt out of receiving ParentSqurae messages at any time, and you also have the ability to customize messaging preferences. They can do this by accessing ParentSquare through the Parent Portal or using the ParentSquare website or app.

In the Event of a School Emergency

Each local school has a team charged with providing leadership in carrying out the Safe Schools Plan. These plans are updated annually and are specific to each facility. The most important step that you, as a parent, can do to prepare for a school emergency is to provide accurate emergency contact information to your child’s school and notify the school if your information changes.

During an emergency, your first response might be to call the school. However, school staff may be busy working with students and first responders and may be unable to handle calls. In addition, a high volume of calls may bog down the phone system. When a school emergency occurs, a parent can get important information by doing one or all of the following:

  1. Visit www.gcpsk12.org or your local school website.
  2. If your school is affected, the district’s notification system, ParentSquare, will send out a notice. Check your messages.
  3. Monitor local television and radio for news alerts.
  4. Tune into the school system’s cable TV station or check out the district’s social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram).