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Advancing the discipline of risk management in public education.
In This Issue
New Season of Hope
Ethics Can Transform
Judge Speaks Out
Spotlight on Risk Leaders
Training Table Update
Groups and Creativity
Objectivity and Creativity
Starting with Policy
Honoring the Caring
Quintessential Trait
Safety: Priority and Value
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First Days of School 2009                                                       Issue 9                      

Risk management is... a vital business process.
School Start Brings New Season of Hope

As schools got underway across the country, a California district with student enrollment of about 60,000 students managed to keep intact a ten person risk management department. Not far away in another California district about the same size, the  risk manager was successful increasing his staff from one to two.    Meanwhile, across the country two neighboring Georgia districts about the same size as the ones in California were experiencing staff changes of their own. The first one terminated its risk manager in July.  The second promptly took advantage of the chance to fill a  newly created claims assistant position by  hiring the former employee of its neighbor district. 

Almost 200 representatives of school district risk sharing groups were among the 900 or so attendees of the California Association of Joint Powers Authorities Annual Conference, September 8-11.  The attendees were treated to presentations covering a wide range of topics and issues.  Service providers filled exhibit booths, distributed materials,  discussed their capabilities and many hosted dinners.  Staff members of more than a dozen school risk groups were on hand, along with superintendents, business officers, risk managers, HR directors, and even a few teachers.  The optimistic spirit of CAJPAs founders and leaders helped overcome the gloomy reports of budget woes and anxiety for student safety.  

In a Florida school district, a principal would not release an elementary school child to her mother who decided to ride to the school on horseback as a protest against long waits in the car lane. Police delivered the child home safely.  Numerous comments of outrage toward the principal were posted on the news website. 

School administrators and teachers may be remembering the words of Charles Dickens from Tale of Two Cities - "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going to Heaven......"

These are just a few of the highlights of the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year, and there is a new leader in the White House and a new kind of flu on playgrounds and in locker rooms.  

It seems now is the time for risk management committees everywhere to be empowered to make a difference.  

Ethics Education Can Transform School




According to Joseph  Mazzola, executive director of the Character Education Partnership, academic dishonesty and bullying are signs of a decline in  positive youth development.  Establishing an effective character education program requires "visionary thinking, strong leadership and total dedication,"  "To work, the strategy must go beyond hallway posters, catchy slogans, or occasional student assembly."   To download The Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education click here
What the Courts Said

"The court is appalled at the decline of manners and conduct in the public school system.  Moreover, the toleration of vulgarity and coarseness by our culture can only portend further decline."  --- U.S. District Judge Avant Edenfield, a 30 year veteran of the federal court,  writing in a case involving a complaint from a student who was the victim of an attempted rape. 

Fortunately for the school district, the case was dismissed when the evidence failed to show that the officials were deliberately indifferent.  However, in his ruling, Judge Edenfield suggested that school officials should "worry less about legal liability and more about their responsibility to instill a measure of discipline in the students who come into their schools each day."
 Risk Leaders in the Spotlight

Marlon Robbins, risk manager,  Elk Grove Unified School District (CA) has published an article titled, "The Interactive Process  and Impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendment."light bulb

Sandy Elliot, risk manager, Cobb County Schools, (GA)  was a panelist on the subject of "The Cost of Pain" at the Annual Educational Conference of the Georgia Workers' Compensation Board, August 31.

Jan DeGracia,  North Bay Schools Insurance Authority, and Shaw Bubb, Montana Schools Group Insurance Authority will be guest experts for Essentials in Risk Pool Management, a multi-session online course that started September 17.

Please send us news about presentations and publications by school risk management leaders.  

Training Table Update

The Institute is continuing to explore ways to help its members and produce reliable information needed for evaluation and implementation of effective training programs for risk control and safety.     Below are some notes on new courses, events, and vendors of interest: 
  • Community Matters is a nonprofit based in Santa Rosa, CA that  has trained Safe School Ambassadors in more than 600 schools from coast to coast over the past ten years.  Rick Phillips is the executive director.  His new book is an excellent guide that clearly explains the rationale for "inside-out" training to reduce bullying and improve school climate. To learn more about what this program can offer, click here.   or call 707 823-6159.
  • Ethics Ed is circulating a compelling case story to help explain the benefits of their online course titled "Preventing Sexual Misconduct and Abuse in Schools."   The case study examines the work of  Neil Trautman, Ph.D., helping a school that experienced repeated incidents of educator abuse of students during a very short period of time. It reveals the denial by those who first thought the abuse was an isolated event by an individual teacher.   Dr. Trautman applies the lessons learned in the online course.  Chuck Origer is the primary contact in Austin, TX for the course. Click here   or call 512 794-8440. 
  • School Bus Safety Company is getting more orders for the Driver Training Course, an innovative 16 part DVD program that is the first  recommended product of the National Association for Pupil Transportation.  Jeff Cassell, who leads the program's rollout, is still on the go, most recently appearing at the Annual Member Conference of United Educators  Insurance.  The program is well suited for use in any size transportation operation and has gained acceptance in more than twenty states.  Click here or call  800 728-2827
 Collaborative Webs Help Risk Managers

In his book, Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration, Keith Sawyer points out  that Boston and the area known as Silicon Valley both spawned clusters of computer companies in the 1980s.  He reCompassminds his readers, that the "culture of Silicon Valley encouraged collaborative webs.  CEOs thought nothing of calling up a competitor's CEO on the phone and asking for help with a problem.  Some organizations suffered from a mindset of possessiveness. The key to understanding innovation is to realize that collaborative webs are more important than creative people"  

 Careful Look and Creativity Help Risk Treatment

.

Do you need to step back from the problem? Or is familiarity with risk a good thing?  Scott Geller, Ph.D., professor at Virginia Tech and author of  Psychology of Safety, says,  "Familiarity is probably a more powerful determinant of perceived risk than choice.  The more we know about a risk, the less it threatens us.  It's so easy to tune out the familiar hazards of the workplace.    When people perceive a new risk, they adjust their behavior to avoid it.  Research has shown that hazards perceived as familiar, understood, controllable and preventable are viewed as less risky.  This is why many hazards are underestimated by employees." 

There are many resources available to schools to help avoid the danger of familiarity and overconfidence.   Commonly mentioned devices for gaining objectivity include, inspections by independent professionals, detailed exposure surveys, review of court decisions and analysis of literature from various scientific and engineering disciplines.

Compass

And....

"A good imagination is an indispensable tool for the seasoned risk manager  It's also one of the reasons why enlisting the help of a diverse group of people is essential to any risk management program.  The more diverse your brainstorming group, the more imaginative you will be in identifying your critical risks and innovative responses." --- Melanie Herman, Executive Director, Nonprofit Risk Management Center. 
 Risk Management Starts with Board Policy
  Article

"Some school district policies on risk management and insurance say little. Hence, they are an inadequate guide to school system practice. If that is the case in your district, the development of a sound board policy on these issues should be an item of high priority. "  from Becoming A Better Board Member.

Your district can find several examples of current board policies related to insurance and risk management through the Institute. A model board policy for comprehensive risk management is also available.  This model was developed through research of existing policies and follows the format used by leading school boards associations. 

Honor for Caring Communities and School Leaders 


  Article

A spring graduation ceremony in a district west of Atlanta was the scene of a dramatic rescue of a guest who suffered a heart attack.  Quick response of  a school safety officer and several teachers,  along with proper use of the district's  Automated Electronic Defibrillator (AED) were noted as the critical factors in the life saving event. 

A 50 year old veteran special education teacher was fatally stabbed in the neck by his 16 year old pupil in a Texas classroom on September 23.  Two grieving families and many students will be affected by this tragedy. The education community lost one of its valued members. 

These contrasting stories can be reminders that an actively caring community often experiences emotions of both joy and sorrow.  Honoring the dedication and skill of education professionals is a high priority for school risk management leaders.  
 The Quintessential Characteristic of Risk Managers 

 
Until his recent retirement, George Head, PhD, was director of Risk Management and Loss Control Education for the Insurance Institute of America.  In a January 1980 article titled, "Risk Management Heralds a New Renaissance, Dr. Head stated,   "The quintessential characteristic of an effective risk manager is universal perception - an openness to events and trends, an awareness of how these events and trends may change the future and a sufficient familiarity with a broad range of human knowledge and skills to see when, and general how, existing expertise may be employed to shape the future."

 Dr. Head further stated that "the effective risk manager iHigh School Football Plays able to examine all facts from all angles in their proper context. He or she is able to see how events can cause changes in exposures to accidental loss. The effective risk manager must have the ability to project the likely outcomes of proposed measures in choosing between competing proposals and demonstrate the value of chosen proposals to senior management."

Financial conditions create strains on staffing and sometimes make it harder to find time for new projects.  New regulations may raise the standard of duty for legal liability and require immediate attention.   These changes also create opportunities for collaborating with others. In Dr. Head's view, being effective means being able to quickly determine "whether a new cloud is black or carrying a silver lining."

 The effective risk manager, concludes Dr. Head, "is the person who is ready to deal with the risk and insurance problems of today and strives to stay ready for tomorrow's problems."

Safety is Our #1 Priority and An Enduring Valu
Most, if not all, individuals and agencies, including the U.S. Department of Education,  put school and student safety at the top of their list of priorities each day.  The proposition is often heard  that safety, in the best sense of the word,  should be an enduring value of a world class educational system. 

There are countless efforts being made across the country to make school safety both a top priority and an enduring value.   The Public School Risk Institute salutes everyone who is engaged in school safety, health and wellness.    

We hope you find the Institute's newly updated website useful.  Please visit regularly and let us know how we can support your efforts to advance risk management.  Your input and feedback is greatly desired and appreciated.

You can now get more benefits from our interactive community at our Facebook page.

Sincerely,
 
Lee Gaby, Executive Director 
Public School Risk Institute  
[email protected]
NEW Phone  (706) 715-3381 Ext. 701