May 2007 — News
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Long Odds, Short Fuses
Are your fire alarms capable of blasting voice messages? Do you have digital signage on your campuses that could alert students of a danger and tell them to stay away or go home?
These are some ways in which technology can help alert concerned individuals to potential crises. But determining what actually constitutes a crisis might be a bit more difficult.
Ironically, in the same district that had such a tizzy over Allen Lee, administrators chose not to close down another of its schools (Crystal Lake Central High School) following a bomb threat written on bathroom walls, and they were criticized heavily for it, even though it proved to be just a prank. (Yes, shockingly, high school students do not always show the greatest discretion with their pranks.)
So, do you play it safe every time and disrupt school at the slightest hint of danger? Do you limit it to blatant threats? Credible threats? Do you implement a county- or district-wide policy that does not allow for discretion on the part of local administrators? Do you keep it going even after the memory of Virginia Tech begins to fade? Such measures are easy to justify right now; they'll be far less sustainable down the road, barring subsequent major incidents at schools.
If an individual is a cause for concern, do you have a policy in place for dealing with individuals on a case by case basis to allow for discretion? Do you expel and arrest now, reserving questions for later, even if it means potentially ruining a child's future who never posed a threat to you or your students?
And once a threat is established, what do you do about it? Do you have an open line of communications with local police? Fire departments? Other emergency responders? There are crisis response/emergency management technologies that can assist, providing constantly updated data on the layout of the school with overlays representing areas in which problems are occurring.
These systems, though, are virtually useless on their own. In order to be effective, they require vigilance and training on the part of the district's emergency responders; they require drills and simulations so that the human element can be an ameliorating factor, rather than a hindrance; and they require coordination with the external agencies that are likely to be involved in a given crisis.
The key here is planning for the unlikely so that, should the worst occur, it does not require a knee-jerk reaction. It requires long-term commitment to strategy, rather than a reliance on hip-shot tactics.
Some of you reading this are in school or district administration. It's your responsibility not to react to headlines but to formulate responsible programs that can help alleviate crisis situations should they arise. Work with your technical and facilities staff to ascertain your capabilities for responding to an emergency. Don't form policy in a vacuum based on too little information.
Those of you who are in IT will play a crucial role in helping to develop and implement security strategies in the coming years and will be judged on long-term effectiveness. You can help administrators by supplying critical information about systems and resources and what your department might need to help make your schools more prepared for emergency situations.
