ALICE Accreditation and Application 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In applying ALICE to a large corporation, which group should receive training BEFORE general employees to ensure program fidelity?
- All employees simultaneously in a single session
- Security and leadership teams first (Correct answer)
- Only front-desk personnel
- Only employees on the ground floor
Correct answer: Security and leadership teams first
Training security staff and leadership first ensures they understand roles, can reinforce the program, and help model appropriate responses during wider rollouts.
Question 2: Which statement best describes the 'options-based' approach that distinguishes ALICE from older lockdown-only protocols?
- Everyone must follow one universal response regardless of circumstances
- Individuals are empowered to choose the best survival option based on situational context (Correct answer)
- Only trained security staff make decisions during an event
- The building's automated system dictates the response
Correct answer: Individuals are empowered to choose the best survival option based on situational context
ALICE's options-based philosophy empowers individuals to assess their specific situation and choose among Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, or Evacuate rather than following a rigid single response.
Question 3: When an ALICE-certified instructor designs a drill for their organization, which scenario type provides the most realistic application experience?
- A classroom lecture describing what to do
- A tabletop exercise only
- A live, scenario-based drill that simulates active threat conditions safely (Correct answer)
- Reading the emergency operations plan aloud
Correct answer: A live, scenario-based drill that simulates active threat conditions safely
Scenario-based drills allow participants to practice decision-making, physical responses, and communication under simulated stress, building realistic competency.
Question 4: Which ALICE component is most directly relevant to accreditation because it involves communicating real-time information to potential victims?
- Alert (Correct answer)
- Lockdown
- Counter
- Evacuate
Correct answer: Alert
The Alert component involves immediately notifying occupants with specific, actionable information so they can make informed survival decisions — a core trained skill in accredited programs.
Question 5: A school district wants all its buildings ALICE-certified. What approach is most efficient for broad accreditation?
- Hire external consultants to train each building once
- Certify multiple internal instructors across buildings who then sustain training locally (Correct answer)
- Require all staff to self-study online without oversight
- Train only principals and assume knowledge will cascade informally
Correct answer: Certify multiple internal instructors across buildings who then sustain training locally
Certifying multiple internal instructors across buildings creates a sustainable, scalable, and locally owned training infrastructure for the entire district.
Question 6: ALICE training programs for higher education must address which challenge not typically present in K-12 schools?
- Larger classrooms with more students
- Open campuses with multiple entry points and autonomous adult populations (Correct answer)
- Younger students who are harder to direct
- Lack of law enforcement response resources
Correct answer: Open campuses with multiple entry points and autonomous adult populations
College and university campuses are typically open environments with adult students who move freely, requiring different alert and evacuation strategies compared to controlled K-12 campuses.
Question 7: What is the purpose of conducting an after-action review (AAR) following an ALICE drill?
- To assign blame for mistakes made during the drill
- To identify gaps, successes, and improvements for future training cycles (Correct answer)
- To submit a report to FEMA
- To count how many people participated
Correct answer: To identify gaps, successes, and improvements for future training cycles
An AAR is a structured debrief that examines what worked, what didn't, and what should be modified to improve the organization's readiness in future events.
ALICE Accreditation and Application 3
In applying ALICE to a large corporation, which group should receive training BEFORE general employees to ensure program fidelity?