A. SAMPLE AGENDA FOR SCHOOL STAFF INSERVICE
I. Introductory background on development of School Crisis Management Plan
II. School Crisis Management Plan
A. Purpose of Plan
B. Overview of Plan
C. General review
of roles and responsibilities
III. Typical impacts of crises
A. Shock; stages of
grief
B. Restoring equilibrium
1. Importance of first 48 hrs.
2. Postvention
IV. Critical incident management
A. What are �critical
incidents?�
B. Coordination
with emergency services
V. Communications
A. Confidentiality
B. Rumor-control within
the school
C. Communication outside
school
1. With media
2. With parents and community groups
VI. Dealing with specific types of crises
A. Review of general
procedures in the case of the expected death of a student or faculty member.
(Practice scenario)
B. Review of general
procedures in the case of accidental death (Practice scenario)
C. Review of general
procedures in the case of a suicide (Practice scenario)
D. Review of general
procedures in the case of homicide (Practice scenario)
E. Review of general
procedures in the case of bus accident with injuries (Practice scenario)
F. Review of general
procedures in a case of armed intruder in the school (Practice scenario)
G. Review of general
procedures in case of natural disaster (Practice scenario)
H. Select additional
incidents/scenario appropriate to the school (Practice scenario)
VII. Closing discussion and questions
B. SCENARIOS FOR USE IN TRAINING
For each scenario, identify key issues and formulate a preliminary action plan.
· A seven-year-old boy playing near a stairwell falls two stories inside the school. Classmates witness it. The child, seriously injured, is taken to the hospital by paramedics. Students are scheduled to be dismissed in 20 minutes.
· A 12th grade student driving home after a football game one Friday night fails to stop at an intersection and the accident results in the death of a classmate�s mother. It is rumored that the boy was drinking.
· A student at your school has contracted meningitis and is hospitalized in critical condition. Health Department authorities have initiated procedures for immunization of classmates. There are untrue rumors that a cafeteria worker who coincidentally was hospitalized the same day is a carrier.
· A parent who has brought her child to school reports to the office that a house in the neighborhood caught fire early that morning and there were fatalities but she does not know who it was. The house is that of two students at the school.
· A bus carrying elementary students home one afternoon stops at an intersection where students looking out the bus see a young male shot in a drive-by shooting. The young man is a cousin of a student on the bus.
· It is a rainy Tuesday morning and, nearby, a truck has overturned releasing toxic fumes. The Fire Department has just ordered that your 600-student elementary school be evacuated immediately.
· You hear on the 11 PM news on a Sunday night that a 10th grade girl at your school is reported missing; she was not home when parents came home from a weekend trip. Minutes after the broadcast a staff member calls and reports that there are rumors that foul play is suspected. You know that she and her boyfriend who is a senior had a loud fight in front of many students on Friday afternoon as buses were loading
· You are notified by police at 5:30 AM that a very popular teacher at your middle school commits suicide, leaving behind a husband and two children, one of who attends your school.
· At a basketball tournament in a nearby city a member of the team collapses. Because of media coverage of the tournament, information about the incident is already being broadcast. The school has just been notified that the student died, but the family has not yet been reached. Students, including the student�s sister, who have heard it on the radio are coming to the office to ask what has happened.
· You have just received a call from central office that there
is a tornado warning for the part of the county in which your middle school
is located. There are 10 portable classrooms; 2 classes in the gymnasium,
1 class coming off the baseball field, and busload of 5th graders arriving
from the feeder school for an orientation visit.
C. PLANNING STEPS FOR SCHOOL CRISIS DRILLS
1. Utilize a paper and pencil activity where the crisis team is presented with five possible crisis situations and each team member records their hypothetical response.
2. Team members discuss their anticipated responses and select
one scenario to simulate each semester with precautions taken to
not unduly alarm staff and
students.
3. It is important to inform the public of the need for crisis planning and the conduction of drills.
4. Avoid the use of dramatic props such as starter pistols and simulated blood.
5. Place a sign in the area where drills are to be conducted clearly designating that a drill is taking place and let all relevant agencies know in advance that it is a drill.
6. Practice drills that do involve moving staff and students to a safe location.
7. An objective staff member from another building of the central office should observe the drill and give feedback to the crisis team.
8. The crisis team should meet and review their activities with
the emphasis placed on continual improvement.
D. MODEL TRAINING TOPICS FOR CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM
I. Introduction
II. Development of school-site Crisis Management Plan
A. Managing crisis
1. Preparation - before it happens
2. Crisis response - when it happens
3. Follow-up - postvention
4. Delegating
B. Communications
1. Rumor-control within the school
2. Media procedures
3. Communication with parents and community
C. Managing grief and
loss
1. Stages of grief
2. First 48 hrs.
3. Memorials, anniversaries planning
D. Legal issues
1. In loco parentis
2. Confidentiality
3. Negligence/liability issues
E. Taking care of caretakers
1. Helping staff personally manage crisis
2. Self-care for team members
F. Community support
and referrals
1. Identifying community support resources
2. Establishing and maintaining community linkages.
III. Crisis Responses
A. Suicide
1. Review of crisis response for suicide
2. Prevention of �epidemic�
a. Myths and facts; warning signs
b. Identifying those at-risk
c. Procedure for intervention with potentially suicidal student
3. Follow-up activities
B. Other deaths - Review
of crisis response and follow-up for each
1. Accidental/sudden death of student or staff member
2. Homicide
3. Anticipated death (following illness, declining health)
C. Critical incidents
at school - shooting, stabbing, weapons, intruder.
1. Review of crisis responses for each
2. Interface with local law enforcement
3. Review of possible follow-up activities
D. Critical incidents
(not at school) - rape, arrests, accidents, hate crimes or racial tensions
1. Review of crisis responses
2. Communication with involved authorities
3. Review of possible follow-up activities
E. Natural disaster
- Floods, hurricanes, tornados, earthquakes
1. Review of crisis responses for each
2. Interface with local disaster relief agencies.
3. Review of possible follow-up
IV. Community Support Services
A. Emergency Assistance
1. Police
2. Fire/Rescue
3. Medical services
4. Mental health
5. Shelter/housing
6. Food/clothing
7. Child protective services
8. Emergency Family Services
9. Disaster relief
B. Counseling Services (nonprofit and community agencies)
C. Health Services/Clinics
1. Medical and dental
2. Substance abuse and Psychiatric
D. Hotlines
1. Crisis
2. Suicide
3. Rape
4. Child abuse (including sexual abuse)
5. Crime
6. Other community hotlines
E. Self-help
1. Alcoholics Anonymous
2. Ala-Anon/Alateen
3. Parent support
4. Other self-help
F. Bilingual/Refugee
Resources
1. Translators
2. Programs/agencies.