Recovery Recovery recovery

During recovery, return to learning and restore 

the infrastructure as quickly as possible.

 Strive to return to learning as quickly 

as possible.

 Restore the physical plant, as well as the 

school community.

 Monitor how staff are assessing students 

for the emotional impact of the crisis.

 Identify what follow up interventions 

are available to students, staff, and first 

responders.

 Conduct debriefings with staff and first 

responders.

 Assess curricular activities that address 

the crisis.

 Allocate appropriate time for recovery.

 Plan how anniversaries of events will be 

commemorated.

 Capture “lessons learned” and incorporate 

them into revisions and trainings.

Response Response 

A GUIDE FOR SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES

Practical Information 

on Crisis Planning

response

A crisis is the time to follow the crisis plan 

and make use of your preparations.

 Determine if a crisis is occurring.

 Identify the type of crisis that is occurring 

and determine the appropriate response.

 Activate the incident management system.

 Ascertain whether an evacuation, reverse 

evacuation, lockdown, or shelter-in-place 

needs to be implemented.

 Maintain communication among all relevant 

staff at officially designated locations.

 Establish what information needs to be 

communicated to staff, students, families, 

and the community.

 Monitor how emergency first aid is being 

administered to the injured.

 Decide if more equipment and supplies 

are needed.

Response Recovery
Preparing Your School for a Crisis preparing mitigation and

prevention

preparedness

Good planning will facilitate a rapid, coordinated, 

effective response when a crisis occurs.

 Determine what crisis plans exist in the 

district, school, and community.

 Identify all stakeholders involved in crisis 

planning.

 Develop procedures for communicating 

with staff, students, families, and the media.

 Establish procedures to account for students 

during a crisis.

 Gather information about the school facility, such as maps and the location of utility 

shutoffs.

 Identify the necessary equipment that needs 

to be assembled to assist staff in a crisis

The goal of mitigation is to decrease the need 

for response as opposed to simply increasing 

response capability.

 Connect with community emergency 

responders to identify local hazards.

 Review the last safety audit to examine 

school buildings and grounds.

 Determine who is responsible for overseeing violence prevention strategies in your 

school.

 Encourage staff to provide input and feedback during the crisis planning process.

 Review incident data.

 Determine major problems in your school 

with regard to student crime and violence.

 Assess how the school addresses these 

problems.

 Conduct an assessment to determine how 

these problems—as well as others—may 

impact your vulnerability to certain crises.

Mitigation and Prevention Preparedness

Taking action now can save lives, prevent 

injury, and minimize property damage in 

the moments of a crisis. If you do not have a 

crisis plan in place, it is time to develop one. If 

you have one, review, practice, and update 

your plan. This brochure is designed to assist 

schools and communities in either situation. 

Although every school’s needs and circumstances are different, these checklists provide general guidance that can be adapted 

as appropriate to each district’s or school’s 

circumstances. 

If you would like additional, more detailed 

information on how to prepare your school or 

district for a crisis, you can order a free copy 

of Practical Information on Crisis Planning: 

A Guide for Schools and Communities, from 

which these checklists have been taken, on 

the U.S. Department of Education Office of Safe 

and Drug-Free School’s emergency preparedness Web site: www.ed.gov/emergencyplan. 

This Web site contains many other crisis 

planning resources as well.

Additional Web Sites

 www.ed.gov/emergencyplan

 www.ready.gov/

 www.fema.gov/kids/

 www.redcross.org/services/disaster

 www.nasponline.org 

Preparing Your School for a Crisis Preparing Your School for a Crisis Mitigation and Prevention Preparedness