Schools Preparedness

Training Links

• IS – 100sc Introduction to the Incident Command System for Schools
• IS – 362 Multi-Hazard Emergency Planning for Schools
• FEMA Independent Study Courses
• DHS&EM Training Schedule
• DHS&EM LEPC Home Page
• Lessons Learned Information Sharing (Over 3500 documents related to schools.  You need to register and receive a password to use this powerful resource.)
• Homeland Security Exercise & Evaluation Program (HSEEP)
• School Related Exercises -

Other Links

• Department of Homeland Security School Preparedness
• Alaska Department of Education and Early Development
• U.S. Department of Education Information (Emergency Planning)
• U.S. Department of Education Information (Campus Public Safety)
• National School Safety Center
• Bomb Threat Response: An Interactive Planning Tool for Schools

The Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools (OSDFS) and The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) collaborated to develop a tool (CD) for schools and law enforcement.

• "Managing Threats: Safety Lessons Learned from School Shootings"
UrbanED, the University of Southern California School of Education magazine, published this article, by Marleen Wong, Ph.D., on school shootings in spring 2007.
• “Campus Public Safety: Weapons of Mass Destruction Terrorism Protective Measures"
Office for Domestic Preparedness, U.S. Department of Homeland Security produced this guide with resources for the more than 4,000 Title IV institutions of post-secondary education. The guide provides affirmative steps listed below to prevent, deter or effectively respond to a terrorist attack involving weapons of mass destruction.
• Building a Disaster-Resistant University
To help minimize injury, damage, monetary loss and disruption of services, post-secondary institutions should put in place a comprehensive set of pre-disaster planning and mitigation actions. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) presents this alongside lessons learned by six universities and colleges that have been working to become more disaster-resistant.

Associations Relevant for Higher Education Emergency Management

• Institute for Business and Home Safety
• Campus Safety, Health, and Environmental Management Association
• National Association of College and University Business Officers
• Society for College and University Planning
• University Risk Management & Insurance Association

Threat Assessment in Schools

The U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Secret Service established the Safe School Initiative, a study of 37 school shootings and other school-based attacks that took place between 1974 and 1999. Through this initiative, the two agencies produced guidance and tools for schools putting forth a process for identifying, assessing and managing students who may pose a threat of targeted violence. This process, known as threat assessment, was first pioneered by the U.S. Secret Service and has been modified based upon findings from this study. These guides are intended for collaborative use by school personnel, law enforcement officials and others with protective responsibilities in our nation's schools. Most recently, the initiative has produced an interactive CD-ROM presenting two hypothetical school scenarios to be used for further developing the assessments team’s skills.

• “Final Report and Findings: Implications for Prevention of School Attacks in the United States” 
• “Threat Assessment in Schools: A Guide to Managing Threatening Situations and to Creating Safe School Climate” 
• “A Safe School and Threat Assessment Experience: Scenarios Exploring the Findings of the Safe School Initiative”