Summary
In the wake of school shootings and other incidents of school violence that have occurred across the country, district administrators increasingly face questions from concerned parents, students, members of the local media, and local government officials. These stakeholders want to know the following: (1) what measures are in place to prevent or reduce the risk of violence and (2) are school officials prepared to respond to and manage incidents that cannot be prevented. This resource offers guidance and templates to support district efforts to effectively answer both of these questions.
Key observations from our research1. District administrators should address stakeholder concerns about safety directly and thoroughly to reiterate district preparedness and foster trust.
2. If a district opts to implement new safety measures after a crisis, administrators should be prepared to answer parent and student questions on how exactly the measures will improve school safety, and, when possible, provide research-based evidence to explain the additions.
3. Ongoing communications on school safety should highlight both preventative programming and emergency protocols.
4. Many districts create crisis communications plans to prepare administrators for communicating in a crisis and guide leaders through effective communications if a crisis does occur.
5. District and school leaders can encourage students to report possible threats by empowering students to make reports through a variety of channels.