P2300 Crisis Management

The District Crisis Team shall be comprised of school district personnel and coordinated with local community responders.  It will be responsible for preparing plans for responding to crises and providing support to schools during crises. The District Crisis Team establishes district-wide procedures that are relevant to crisis preparedness and response; guides their implementation at the school level; develops and recommends training for school-based crisis intervention teams; establishes and maintains district-level connections with agencies; provides school-level teams with support and backup at the time of a crisis; hears safety concerns and makes recommendations relative to safety and coordinates the sharing of resources among school-level teams.   

Administrative Implemental Procedures

1. A crisis includes, but is not limited to, the death of a student, staff member, or a member of a student’s immediate family by accident, illness or suicide; all hazard situations including man-made occurrences and natural disasters; or a hazardous materials incident.   
2. The Mental Health Crisis Team, an extension of the District Crisis Team, provides leadership and support to school personnel, students and families during the recovery process following a crisis and the return to normalcy. 
3. The Weather Team, an extension of the District Crisis Team, provides leadership and support in determining if weather conditions are of such a nature that the overall safety of students would be greatly jeopardized and the status of after school and evening activities.   
4. The Principal, or designee, of each district building shall be responsible for the organization of a functioning building crisis team, developing an annual crisis plan and conducting crisis drills each school year for the purpose of protecting the safety and well-being of all employees and students. The Building Crisis Team will be modeled after, but a separate entity from, the District Crisis Team. The Building Crisis Team will meet at least on a quarterly basis (3 times) each year. Members, those responders listed on the crisis plan, must be immediately accessible during the school day and able to perform the duties identified within the crisis plan.   
5. The crisis plan and drills shall adhere to the design, organization, and implementation as developed by the Division Director of Safety Services. Each school’s crisis plan shall be revised and on file with the Safety Services Department no later than the first teacher report day of the school year. Crisis Plans will be provided to and accessible to all building personnel. The crisis template is designed to follow the National Incident Management System (NIMS) and the Incident Command System (ICS) as defined by FEMA. 
6. Crisis, tornado and fire drills will be conducted at each district attendance and nonattendance site during each school year in accordance with state law and in collaboration with, or as required by, the Division Director of Safety Services and/or Safety Services Department staff.  
7. The spokesperson for all crisis incidents shall be the Division Director of Strategic Communications or designee. 
8. In the event of a crisis incident, the building principal or designee shall notify Security Communications (973-2100) of the incident and implement the school’s crisis plan. When notified of a building crisis, the Division Director of Safety Services or designee will activate a district-wide crisis response team to respond to the scene of the crisis as needed. Upon arrival at the crisis scene, the Division Director of Safety Services or designee shall direct the District’s response to the crisis incident.  
9. If the school district is asked to provide shelters for natural disasters or community emergencies, the Division Director of Safety Services or designee will inform the Superintendent or designee of the request and act as the liaison for the school district with the local American Red Cross disaster service and/or Sedgwick County Emergency Management office. 

Administrative Responsibility: Safety and Environmental Services Department

Latest Revision Date: April 2021 

Previous Revision Date: February 2019 P2300

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