Community
Caucus Chair: Jon Bodie, CEM, TEM K-12education@iaem.com
Caucus Vice Chair: Andre Briggs
Caucus Secretary: Cumorah Eldredge
Immediate Past Chair: Scott Hudson, CEM
Board Liaison: Allison Farole CEM, IAEM-USA Region 5 President, iaem.R5@iaem.com
Staff Liaison:
Chelsea Steadman, chelsea@iaem.com
IAEM-USA members interested in participating in this caucus should email the caucus staff liaison and tell them how you can contribute to or learn from this committee's important work.
Policy Guidelines
The purpose of the IAEM-USA K-12 Education Caucus is to address emergency management issues specific to K-12 school districts. School districts are the backbone of our communities across this nation. They are taking a more proactive role in preparing their students, faculty, staff and visitors for responding to, recovering from and mitigating against all threats and hazards while creating a more resilient school district. The purpose of this caucus is to provide school district emergency managers a voice on a national and international scale to ensure that their needs also are being addressed by government and industry officials.
The caucus meets monthly on the last Wednesday of each month except during the months of July and December.
This document, developed by K-12 Education Caucus members, explores the necessity of effective emergency management (EM) program development, implementation, and overall management by those tasked with EM responsibilities for K-12 schools or school districts. Designed for any K-12 institution (public, private, charter) it outlines key priorities, strategies, and resources.
This priority entails the initial familiarization of emergency manager with the institution. The focus of this priority is to establish operational foundation which includes departmental familiarization and the establishment of district/jurisdiction’s incident command structure.
Incident resources refer to the personnel, equipment, and facilities that are dedicated to managing and responding to incidents or emergencies. These resources are essential for ensuring an effective and coordinated response to various situations, such as natural disasters, accidents, or other emergencies.
This priority focuses on establishing a program with solid plans, supportive personnel, budgets, and resources based on observations, effective and efficient planning strategies, assessments, evaluations and networking tactics.
The training and exercises priority focuses on ensuring the institution’s players understand the ICS structure, emergency procedures and foundational principals of emergency management. At least a basic knowledge in these areas will assist in supporting a successful response to any emergency on or off a school campus.
Monitoring and refining a K-12 EM program is a critical ongoing process to ensure its effectiveness and adaptability. Regular evaluation allows educational institutions to identify areas for improvement, address evolving threats, and enhance overall preparedness.
Best Practices for K-12 Emergency Management