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February 1991
PREPARING FOR SCHOOL CRISIS
By
David Nichols, Ph.D.
Director, Public Safety
Jacksonville State University
Alabama
Shootings, hostage-takings, stabbings, gang-related crimes,
rapes, and other acts of violence are no longer confined to the
streets or to urban neighborhoods. Neither do the perpetrators
of such shocking crimes always lurk in dark alleys and target
predictable victims. The fact is that all of these crimes are
becoming increasingly common in elementary and secondary schools
throughout the country. Violence has moved from the streets onto
school campuses, causing parents, school officials, and the
public to become alarmed about the safety of school children. No
school--small or large, rural or urban, public or private--is
immune.
Witness what has occurred on schools grounds just within
the past 3 years. In September 1988, an elementary school in
Greenwood, South Carolina, was the scene of the worst possible
scenario of a school disaster. A gunman entered the school
building through the front door, walking from room to room
firing at will. He killed two children and wounded two teachers
and seven more children before he was apprehended. In that same
year, an armed Vietnam veteran entered the grounds of a Chicago
school, killing four and wounding two before being shot by
police. And just recently, in September 1990, a heavily armed
17-year-old Forsyth County student held classmates hostage for 5
hours until Georgia law enforcement officials were successful in
ending the siege.
Compounding the incidents of violence in schools are
reports of disasters, such as fatal school bus accidents,
devastating weather conditions, and fires. For instance, in
Montgomery County, New York, a schoolhouse wall collapsed during
a severe storm in 1989, seriously injuring a number of
elementary students. In September 1989, a school bus accident
in Alton, Texas, cost the lives of 21 children when the bus
plunged into a water-filled pit.
These incidents represent but a few of the school crises
that have occurred within recent years, and the list goes on.
Unfortunately, such incidents are steadily becoming trends that
show acts of violence and disasters occurring on school grounds
are on the increase.
For the most part, school officials are ill-prepared to
handle such incidents and the panic, trauma, and confusion that
usually follows. Even so, many schools still have no
comprehensive, effective plan to deal with these unpredictable
circumstances. In fact, a study conducted by the author in 1987
of Alabama's 129 public school systems found that only 24
percent of the responding school superintendents indicated they
had any written plans or guidelines for safety and security
measures.
With the absence of written plans or guidelines, most
school administrators rely on a reactionary approach. This
usually results in confusion, miscommunications, poor
decisionmaking, and even unnecessary injuries and complications
during a crisis. Furthermore, many school officials are
reluctant to address unforeseen circumstances, preferring to
deal with what is at hand. Some have the attitude that "it
won't happen to us at our school."
The apparent absence of a meaningful disaster plan usually
means a lack of effective communication between school
administrators and local police officials and other public
safety agencies. Consequently, when emergencies do arise,
neither the police nor school officials are adequately prepared
to respond effectively.
POLICE PREPAREDNESS
While school authorities must accept their responsibility
to have a plan, it is essential for police officials themselves
to ensure preparedness for school-related crises. Despite
police training, readiness, and specialization, often no plan
exists that deals exclusively with school disasters, in spite of
the fact that school emergencies require special consideration
for a proper police response, i.e., ages of students, parental
reactions, the school facility, etc.
For these reasons, assiduous police administrators should
initiate the development of a school emergency plan. However,
this plan should not be solely a product of the police
department but should be a comprehensive one involving the input
from all appropriate organizations and constituencies. This
calls for improved communications and relations between police
officials and school administrators, as well as personnel from
other public safety agencies.
THE PLANNING PROCESS
Since the planning process itself requires commitment and
cooperation, a planning team should be the first order of
business for the police executive. Representatives from key
agencies, including the police department, fire department,
emergency medical department, hospital, school, news media, and
utilities, should comprise the team.
Once organized, the team should develop a mission statement
that addresses the plan's objectives. Then, the team should
take the appropriate steps to develop an emergency response plan
for schools.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN
When developing a plan to deal with school crises, it is
important to include the essential components of any good
planning process, thus reducing the likelihood of confusion,
lack of communication, and incongruence. Basically, the
elements of a good plan are: 1) A mission statement and
objectives; 2) assessment; 3) viable options; 4) selection and
development of a plan; 5) implementation; and 6) evaluation.
To begin, the planning team needs to determine specifically
what is the mission of this plan and the objectives to be met.
Then, a comprehensive assessment should be conducted to
determine "what is" with regard to potential problems, available
resources, facility constraints, and other strategic
considerations. Following this step, the planning team should
look at several optional plans, perhaps by reviewing similar
plans in other communities. Next, the primary task is to select
the direction the planning team wants to take to develop an
approach suitable for that particular community's unique
circumstances. Once the plan is developed, it should be
implemented in terms of approval by appropriate governing
authorities and disseminated to all pertinent agencies.
Finally, an evaluation of the plan should be conducted at least
annually to determine if some modifications are necessary.
Developing a plan for police response to school emergencies
requires strategic considerations throughout the process. These
considerations are important at virtually every stage of the
process, but especially in the assessment and plan development
stages. The progressive police executive will carefully
anticipate all contingencies and develop strategies for those
unpredictable circumstances. When developing a plan,
considerations should be given to effective communications,
emerging operation procedures, key personnel, coordination, and
recovery.
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
It is of major importance to ensure that effective
communications are established with the police response plan.
Effective communications include equipment requirements,
emergency operating procedures, and good working relationships
among all key personnel. The planning team should determine
equipment needs, such as two-way radios, special radio
frequencies, mobile telephones, bull horns, and paging devices,
to name a few. Contingency plans should also be made for
circumstances that may require special communications
arrangements.
EMERGENCY OPERATING PROCEDURES
Emergency operating procedures must be designed to meet
most every conceivable emergency that could occur on a school
campus, yet be flexible enough to adjust to the unexpected. The
emergency operating procedures of all agencies and units that
would respond during crises should be reviewed and structured to
allow for maximum coordination. Conflict and confusion during
crises can be disastrous.
It is essential to ensure that the master emergency
operating procedures be shared with all participating agencies
so that all personnel can be oriented and trained in the
procedures. In particular, school officials should always be
included in the dissemination and familiarization of public
safety and police procedures so that they understand their own
roles within the emergency response.
A good relationship among all agencies and their officials
is a key component for the successful response to school crises.
The police response to violence, hostage-taking, or any number
of criminal incidents must be predicated on a standing
relationship with school officials, other public safety
authorities, the news media, and all other key personnel who may
be involved. Such relationships should be developed on an
ongoing basis, hopefully long before a crisis is at hand.
Visits to schools and meetings with the heads of all
participating agencies are important.
KEY PERSONNEL
Key personnel should be a major consideration for
developing the police emergency response plan. One approach to
identifying and involving key people, and at the same time,
maintaining an effective plan with a "ready" status is to form a
Mutual Emergency Response Team (MERT), which would be called to
the scene in the event of a school crisis to assist in
coordination efforts. This team would be comprised of key
representatives of all potential responding agencies, as well as
other strategic community, government, and business personnel.
The MERT should meet two or three times each year to review the
master emergency response plan. Members of the original
planning team may serve on the MERT.
In addition to the MERT, police executives should ensure
that all key players know and understand their roles and
responsibilities. Assignment of functions and duties reduces
confusion and controversy at the scene of the crisis. In some
instances, such as a fire or explosion, the police may assume a
support role rather than the primary role.
COORDINATION
During a major school crisis, such as a hostage situation
or a gunman within the school, a number of police agencies may
respond, cutting across jurisdictional boundaries. In addition,
other public safety services will likely be called upon, e.g.,
emergency medical technicians. Consequently, it is necessary to
include coordination and command control in an emergency
response plan.
Each incident dictates who is in charge, where the command
post should be set up, who should be called upon for assistance,
and the coordination of the entire operation. Every potential
task should be viewed in terms of assignment to include traffic
control, crowd control, and even routine service details.
One important concern is how to deal with the news media.
Experience by those who have responded to school crises reveals
that this is an area that deserves special attention. Working
closely with the news media facilitates the dissemination of
accurate information to the community.
RECOVERY
The experienced police administrator knows that as with any
major crisis, the job is not necessarily completed when the
exigent circumstances are over. The recovery aspects of a major
school crisis should be given serious consideration.
Notification procedures, followup investigations, reports,
statements to the media, and crisis evaluation are all very
important in successfully completing the police role and
responsibilities following a school crisis. In some
circumstances, i.e., gang violence, continued police presence
may be required as part of the recovery to ensure the peace and
the safety of the students so that the academic program can
resume. In addition, specially trained police personnel may be
able to assist students and faculty in meeting emotional and
psychological needs brought on by trauma.
CONCLUSION
Preparedness is the key word in planning the police response
to school crises. Police executives can no longer rely on a
reactionary approach to major emergencies and disasters. A
well-developed, comprehensive plan should be a top priority for
every police department in this country that has even one school
within its jurisdiction.
Certainly, most disasters and crises cannot be prevented by
law enforcement officials. Yet, tough decisions made during
crisis situations can be based on months of thorough preparation
and sound planning. Police administrators should not depend on
school officials or other public safety officials to develop
crises planning for them. Progressive police managers must
provide the leadership needed for any type of crisis that could
occur in our schools.