Iowa Education Leader #9 * February 28, 2003
A policy and advocacy update from the Iowa Department of Education

As school leaders, each of you are partners with parents of your students in providing a safe and secure environment for those students. Even though the national threat level alert has recently been reduced from orange to yellow, I know that some of you have parents or staff that may wonder if thought has been given to how schools are prepared to deal with the new type of threats that may be occurring.

Schools across the country have crisis management plans for virtually any kind of natural disaster such as a flood or tornado, and violent crimes such as shootings or bombs. Now schools are wondering if those plans will work for the new threats facing our nation such as terrorist attacks, which could involve biological or chemical devices. We have again sought the advice of the Iowa Department of Emergency Management and would offer you some suggestions on how you might proceed.

For the most part, it seems that your existing plans should prove to be very useful. Many parts of an effective emergency response plan - such as emergency notifications and evacuation procedures - will apply to all hazards regardless if they are natural or man-made. Remember that continued planning discussions not only build readiness, but they build confidence and greater peace of mind as well.

Every plan, however, should be reviewed periodically, so now would be a good time to evaluate your plan, update the crucial elements such as contact numbers, and add items relevant to emerging threats like bioterrorism. It would be timely to use this review process to ensure that your school's faculty, staff and students, along with local first responders, know their roles and responsibilities. Don't plan in a vacuum. The true value of the planning process is to bring responders together to talk about the actions they'll take in times of emergency.

It's important to realize that every plan must be specifically written and designed at the local level, because each school district has unique qualities that require unique responses. Some buildings, for instance, may be isolated and need to include additional steps to ensure student safety in the event of an emergency.

At the same time, all plans should include many of the same general elements, and can be reviewed and revised using the information below. Your plan should fit in with the overall response plan for your county. As with all emergencies, coordinating with local responders will be the key to protecting your students and staff while minimizing damage to life and property.

Key reminders:

• Review and revise your plan in cooperation with local, city, and county officials. When a crisis occurs, it is essential that all responders work together and stay in constant communication. A list of county emergency management coordinators is at www.state.ia.us/emergencymanagement/Links/CoCoord.htm.
• In the event of a terrorist emergency, you'll receive official notification via the Emergency Alert System broadcast by television and radio stations in your area and also NOAA Weather Radio.
• Choose a credible source of information to keep you updated about risks and emergency situations. You are likely to hear frequent rumors on the news or from friends, but you must have an official source to confirm the information and provide direction. You'll find a range of information at www.iowahomelandsecurity.org (Iowa Homeland Security) and www.idph.state.ia.us/ (Iowa Department of Public Health), both of which include regular and reliable updates about health risks. Additional information may be obtained from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at www.dhs.gov.
• Communicate frequently with parents to assure them you are prepared to respond in a way that assures the safety of the students. Parents need peace of mind that you are prepared for emergencies. Reassure them through newsletter articles, notes home, during school board meetings, or special meetings at the school. While you are allowed to keep some portions of your emergency management plan confidential to ensure security, you still must inform parents of how they will be notified in the event of an emergency and how they will be reunited with their children.

Evaluate your current plan

The district crisis management plan is the responsibility of the local school board and superintendent. The DE provided updated safe schools guidelines to them last fall via the ICN; you can find all the related materials at www.state.ia.us/educate/ecese/cfcs/sdfsc/documents.html.

• A good example of a crisis management plan can be found in the Safe Schools Leadership Handbook, distributed by the DE to each superintendent. There's an online copy at www.state.ia.us/educate/ecese/cfcs/sdfsc/documents.html
• When it's time to review your plan, use the checklist provided at www.state.ia.us/educate/ecese/cfcs/sdfsc/icn/checklist.doc for a good overview of who should be on the safety team and what items should be reviewed annually.

Update your plan

• An information brief on terrorism, including chemical, biological, radiological, etc. attacks, can be found at www.state.ia.us/educate/ecese/cfcs/sdfsc/icn/brief.doc.
• Specific directions for preparing and responding to terrorism can be found at www.state.ia.us/educate/ecese/cfcs/sdfsc/icn/procedures.doc.
• Practice is important. Please coordinate your practice and drills with local, city and county emergency management officials.

If you have questions

Contact your county emergency management coordinator to get the best answers to specific questions for your plan. If you don't know who your county emergency management coordinator is, visit the Emergency Management Division website at www.state.ia.us/emergencymanagement/Links/CoCoord.htm or call your county administration office or the State Emergency Management office at 515/281-3231.

Resources:

The Red Cross has developed a range of information for schools, including:

• A chart that shows how schools should prepare and respond at each alert level, www.redcross.org/services/disaster/beprepared/hsas/schools.pdf
• Disaster publications for teachers and schools, including information about how to incorporate preparedness into the classroom curriculum, at www.redcross.org/pubs/dspubs/tchrschl.html
• The Center for Disease Control has a guideline for "Protecting Building Environments for Airborne Chemical, Biological, or Radiological Attacks at www.bt.cdc.gov/planning/index.asp. (You'll note that plastic sheeting and duct tape are mentioned in the guide; however, please remember those are just a few of the recommendations within a larger context of overall preparedness.)

Iowa Education Leader will be distributed periodically from Iowa Department of Education Director Ted Stilwill. To send comments or receive a faxed copy, please contact editor Kathi Slaughter, 515/281-5651, kathi.slaughter@ed.state.ia.us.

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