Public School Works
March Newsletter | 2014
Safety News

In This Issue

Customer Highlight: Great Oaks Career Campuses

In The News: The Importance of Preparing Teachers for Crises

System Highlight: Crisis Response Program

In the News: Non-Violent School Emergencies

Events

Join PSW at these upcoming events:

TASBO Annual Conference
Austin, TX
2/25-2/26
booth #147

SCASBO Spring Conference
Myrtle Beach, SCL
3/5-3/6
booth #98

SASBO Conference
Kingsport, TN
4/7-4/11
booth #TBD

KASBO Conference
Topeka, KS
4/9-4/11
booth #TBD

OASBO Workshop & Trade Show
Columbus, OH
4/8-4/11
booth #TBD

CASBO Conference
Broomfield, CO
4/16-4/18
booth #TBD

IASBO Conference
Schaumburg, IL
4/30-5/2
booth #TBD

Testimonial of the Month

“We looked for a way we could enhance our district safety program, and PSW was the answer. We use PublicSchoolWORKS to manage non-training requirements like drills and inspections, staff accidents, and staff safety training - even with our students - to improve safety for the district.”

Health, Safety and Security Coordinator at Great Oaks Career Campuses (OH) and EmployeeSafe Suite User


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Customer Highlight:

Great Oaks Career Campuses

Great Oaks Career Campuses provides career and technology education programs for 3,500 students at four campuses, in addition to 11,000 satellite students at 36 different school districts around Cincinnati, Ohio. To keep students, staff, visitors and buildings safe, Great Oaks developed a three-pronged approach to managing and sustaining its safety program:

  • Staff training - Great Oaks uses the PublicSchoolWORKS (WORKS) Training System to manage, track and document all staff training, including courses associated with crisis response. These courses contain updated multimedia content and quizzes to ensure comprehension. The online access gives staff members the flexibility to complete courses when it is most convenient for them.
  • Automated safety management communication - The WORKS system auto- emails employees to remind them to complete assigned training and important safety requirements including drills, inspections, chemical hygiene and other compliance tasks. If not completed by the deadline, the system automatically sends non-compliance reports to key supervisors and administrators that details staff members that did not complete their assigned training or tasks by the deadline.
  • Powerful partnerships with local law enforcement - Great Oaks works with its local law enforcement agencies to conduct lecture-based training and crisis response simulations. These give Great Oaks the opportunity to put safety plans to the test, ensuring they are effective in the event of a crisis.

To provide additional security, Great Oaks has installed more than 100 cameras per campus, plus electric door locking, visitor management and electronic keycard entry systems at each campus. Further, Great Oaks uses NAVIGATE, a system that maps the locations of all cameras, shut-offs, AEDs, exits and more on each campus.

To learn more about how WORKS will implement, manage and sustain your safety program, email [email protected].

In The News:

The Importance of Preparing Teachers for Crises

On January 14, a Roswell, NM, student opened fire in the Berrendo Middle School gymnasium just before class was to begin. Two students were injured, but John Masterson, a social studies teacher at the school, was able to talk the student into putting the gun down before hurting more students. Masterson is being praised as a hero, and Berrendo Middle School applauded for its swift and effective response to the incident, citing its active shooter training as the reason. To read more about the incident, click here.

This heroic gesture further proves that with proper training, educators will be prepared to act effectively in a crisis ensuring the safest outcome for students and staff. Some states now mandate training for crisis response, including active shooter.

Two states that are best-practice models for crisis response are New Jersey and Virginia. New Jersey schools are required to practice lockdowns and other drills for various crises throughout the year, and Virginia requires schools to have “threat assessment teams” trained by the state. These threat assessment teams are trained to create a single system for reporting students showing signs of potential violence.

System Highlight:

Crisis Response Program

The WORKS comprehensive Crisis Response Program is a customizable program designed to ensure that school staff and facilities, as well as local agencies, are prepared to act in the event of a crisis.

The Crisis Response Program consists of the following components:

  • Staff Training - Online courses cover topics such as active shooter, school lockdown drills, bomb threat / IED preparedness and FEMA courses. Custom courses can be created with district-specific procedures and plans for emergency response, complete with seamless introduction to district staff through the WORKS platform.
  • Student Training - An ALICE Active Shooter Response training course for students is included.
  • Reporting Tools - Students and educators have access to the WORKS Student Bullying and Safety Reporting Systems to report bullying, safety, health and wellness concerns via phone or online. These reports are immediately auto-communicated to key district staff to address. Each report is reviewed and if imminent danger is suspected, a call tree is activated 24/7 to ensure administrators can take action.
  • Recurring Safety Tasks - The system helps administrators by managing the timing and completion of various safety drills, ongoing security maintenance and building-specific tasks. Additionally, the system manages the annual review of plans, procedures and informational forms to ensure they are up to date.
  • Parent InfoCenter - The Parent InfoCenter gives parents direct, easy access to the Student Bullying & Safety Reporting systems and national crisis hotlines, as well as provides student safety information, such as the signs of bullying or other student safety issues.
  • 24/7 Support - The WORKS award-winning Client Services Team can be reached at all times for training and system support.

While training is extremely important to ensuring school safety, effective crisis plans provide sufficient preventative and preparedness measures, response and crisis management information, and tools for recovering from the crisis event. Learn more how your district will be prepared for a crisis with our Crisis Response Program , or email our sales team.

In The News:

Non-Violent School Emergencies

When asked what constitutes a school crisis, many think only of school shootings. However, non-violent crises are just as detrimental to the daily functioning of a school.

For example, the water crisis that occurred last month in West Virginia affected more than a quarter-million residents in the region. Due to a chemical leak into the Elk River, water was unsafe for any consumption – including bathing or drinking - for six days. A “Do Not Use” water order forced schools to close.

Even after the Do Not Use order expired, and flushing then testing of the water supply occurred, 14 schools detected recontamination. Three of these had to close a second time to flush and safety test the water supply once again before the schools could reopen.

This, along with inclement weather, exhausted many districts’ allotted emergency days, leaving schools to cancel early dismissals and resume teaching on professional development days in order to meet the required 180 total days of instruction.

Further, schools were closed, by county health departments and the West Virginia National Guard to ensure:

  • staff understood and followed the proper flushing procedures to replenish their supply with safe water.
  • filters were changed.
  • dishes were sanitized properly.
  • all prepared food was discarded.

Some schools even modified school lunch menus to serve foods that didn’t require water to prepare, such as serving chicken nuggets instead of chicken breasts. Cafeterias switched to use of packaged foods and canned vegetables and fruits when possible. When fresh produce was used, it first had to be washed with bottled water.

Instances like this non-violent crisis remind educators that various emergencies and their impact on teaching and learning are different. Fortunately, WORKS makes it easy for schools to prepare for the unexpected with model, customizable emergency response plans, emergency action plans and crisis communication tools.

These types of emergencies further emphasize the importance of swift and thorough communication with employees and the community, as well as strong working relationships with local authorities. The combination will ensure safety for students, staff and the surrounding community regardless of the crisis.