A long time ago, Katherine and I advocated parent groups to help schools be the safe learning environments they're supposed to be. Our efforts never gained much traction despite our best efforts.
Several reasons for this come to mind.
Lack of knowledge on what emergency management is, much less entails, was one of those reasons.
Another reason was apathy. It seems like this kind of effort is almost cyclical. A graphic I made helps illustrate this point:
Another reason was no one appeared to know where to start. Parents are key stakeholders in their children's safety while at school. Problem is, few of them know what emergency management is, what their role in it might be, or how overwhelming the process can sometimes be, especially without adequate training in that process.
That's pretty much where everything broke down.
Today, we still have school districts kind of floundering as they face active shooter drill requirements by law. They also have little, to no, knowledge on how to design, develop, and conduct active shooter drills that actually do no harm to those they're intended to protect.
Frustrating? You bet! Why? Because now there's an ongoing and growing call to arm teachers and/or school staff instead of looking at the bigger school safety picture.
So, I got thinking there has to be a better way because school safety is so much more than active shooter drills.
Voila! FEMA, by it's very organizational structure, could serve as a model for how to better address this issue. There's the Federal level emergency management organization (FEMA). There are state level emergency management organizations in every state. There are county level emergency management organizations in every state. There are even city level emergency management organizations albeit mostly in 'larger' communities. County and/or city emergency management organizations are the 'boots on the ground' that actually engage in designing, developing, and implementing their jurisdictions' emergency management programs.
My point is, that's a model for educational organizations, as well. There's already a Department of Education at the Federal level that has resources available to help provide for school safety. There are similar state level organizations. There are similar county level organizations. Jefferson County Schools in Colorado (home of Columbine High School) is an example of this. Their approach to school safety is considered by many to be a gold standard: Jefferson County Public Schools Protocols.
Thing is, though, many schools aren't at this level, yet. I'd be willing to wager most school staff in Jefferson County, Colorado aren't even at that level either. If any of them can tell me they are familiar with all the things detailed in the Emergency Response Crisis Management Manual they would be required to do if an actual incident played out, I'll eat my words.
So, what's missing here? In emergency management circles, the local emergency management director at county and/or city levels directs emergency management activities including all five Mission Areas and Core Capabilities. The same preparedness mission areas of emergency management also apply to school safety:
But, in schools, who actually does all this stuff? Finding the answer to this question can be a bit of a challenge. The FEMA hierarchy includes 'boots on the ground' at local levels that actually design, develop, and implement local emergency preparedness missions. Schools, however, lack that last, most vital tier. And, that's where teachers can fill a vital role. Teachers could become paid part time 'emergency management specialists' in an extra-curricular capacity, like coaches, in their individual schools. That's what's been missing here.
Simple. Straightforward. Cost-effective. All that's needed is for school districts to find it within their budgets to allocate for, and create, these positions.
Arming teachers with weapons is fraught with risks that far too many do not take into consideration. For me, personally, arming teachers is a non-starter. There are better alternatives. Creating 'emergency management specialist' positions to be filled by school staff willing to acquire appropriate training and certification is arguably one of the best alternatives available in my humble opinion. Also, training is free and accessible online from multiple sources including FEMA's Multihazard Emergency Planning for Schools Site Index (currently undergoing development), schoolsafety.gov, and Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools Technical Assistance Center.
Where there's a will, there's always a way.
My two cents.
* Comments on this blog are moderated.
Seems like a straight forward common sense approach, easily manageable and would work from the inside out instead of from the top to the bottom. Teachers and parents are major stakeholders in any emergency within the walls and on the grounds of their where their children and students attend!
ReplyDeleteAs first responder of few decades I'd love to chat. We train multiple times a year on active shooter situations. While I don't disagree with everything you say, there are 2 important key steps that HAVE to happen once an incident is actively happening for the best outcome and those are definitely not outlined here. And these things are not my opinion, they are what we train on based on national standards that have changed over the years.
ReplyDeleteHi, Chris. Thanks for the feedback. I understand where you're coming from, and I agree. That being said, first response protocols are not my area of expertise. I would never presume to tell a first responder how to do their job or what standards they might need to meet. That's not what emergency management is all about. and that's why I advocate for school staff be designated as emergency managers for their individual schools on a paid part time basis much like coaches. I also advocate that any school staff filling this role being awarded professional development training credits to become proficient in emergency management requirements. In your profession, there are national standards. It's my understanding many of them came about as a direct result of the response to the Columbine massacre. If some of those standards had been in place for Columbine, I believe the shooters would have been prevented from doing at least some of the damage they did. I don't think they would have prevented my daughter from being shot (she was outside eating lunch with some friends when the shooting began). Please don't get me wrong. I have nothing but the utmost respect for the EMTs/paramedics/law enforcement that responded. They followed established protocols for response to set up a perimeter and wait for SWAT to enter the building. A lot of people faulted them for waiting. I never did and never will. They learned from this and got 'engage and neutralize' into the school mass shooting lexicon. I've been frustrated when I see responses like those at MSD in Florida and Robb Elementary in Texas because they didn't appear to me to have learned lessons from the Columbine massacre. Enough of that, though. Part of the problem with active shooter drills, as I see it, is there are no national standards on how to design, develop, implement, and evaluate their outcomes. There is guidance. But no national standards I'm aware of. To me, that's a huge planning deficiency because too much reliance is put on the shoulders of school admins to do those things, and, sadly, too often they fall far short of doing them effectively. Jefferson County Schools has one of the more robust emergency management programs I've found nationally. But even they fall short in some areas like with their 'emergency plans'. On their website, they show the I Love U Guys Foundation's Standard Response Protocols as their emergency plans. The SRPs are really good, but they shouldn't be substituted FOR an emergency operations plan. Rather, they should be a critical part OF an emergency management program, and not just an emergency operations plan. I'm on Discord and have responded to you with a couple of posts there. You indicated you'd like to do a face to face at some point. I'm open to doing that. Thanks, again, for your feedback.
Delete