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.