Blog - Safe Havens International

When School Safety Software is Slower

September 1, 2015 by Michael Dorn

While designed to make it easier for travelers to find information, this airport electronic information board slows down the process and inconveniences people who need to use it. Some school safety software solutions also slow people down. This can be dangerous in emergency situations.

Software can be Slower than the Human Brain

While flying out of the Atlanta Airport last week, I was reminded of the need to write this column. A while back, I went to a concourse information board to find a restaurant. I quickly realized that they had installed a very sophisticated and interactive information board to help travelers. As I stood in line watching people try to figure out how to use the new device, it became quickly apparent that though the new board was more robust, had much better graphics and looked really cool, it was dramatically slower to use.

Unexpected Outcomes

The new board has touch screen capability which allows the user to navigate to a wide variety of different screens. Unfortunately, this means that only one person at a time can look at the board for information. With the old single display map four or five people could look at the board and find what they are looking for at one time. When I used the board last week, I found that people are still standing in line trying to figure out how to use the innovative but slow device. While this information board probably results in millions of wasted minutes for travelers each month, it does not endanger anyone’s life. When similar delays result from technology that is designed for school crisis situations, inconvenience can become life-threatening.

New School Safety Software

We are contacted by school safety product vendors with new school safety solutions every week. We have found some new products to be impressive and practical while others cause us concern. For example, a number of vendors now offer solutions which allow school crisis plans to be viewed on portable devices. We considered making our school crisis planning templates available in this format about five years ago. Our planning team decided that this was not a wise approach after looking at the research of Dr. Gary Klein and considering feedback from school and public safety officials who had experienced significant problems with software-based crisis plans during actual emergency situations.

Unrealistic School Safety Software Can Kill

In one case, a client who had paid more than one million dollars for a computerized school crisis plan was successfully sued after the death of a student. Our client could not understand how an administrator who had received several days of emergency preparedness training could perform so poorly, forgetting even the most basic action steps. When we performed one-on-one controlled simulations with a variety of school administrators in the district, we learned that they could not make reasonable and prompt decisions fast enough because they had been inadvertently conditioned to think that they would be able to pull up the action steps if faced with a crisis. As this was a large urban school district that has experienced a large number of fatal school crisis events, it was troubling to see how ill-prepared administrators were to make life and death decisions.

Test Your School Safety Software Solutions

We have seen numerous instances of technology solutions that like the airport information station, appear to be very helpful at first glance, but can actually make matters worse because of false assumptions about how effective they will be under fast-breaking and stressful conditions. As we have advised many times, new approaches should be thoroughly tested using scenario-based prompting which requires individuals to react in very short time frames. If it does not work in simulations, things will most likely get worse when young lives are actually at risk.

Filed Under: Michael Dorn, Uncategorized Tagged With: safety, school, software, Software Solutions

Special Education Students in School Safety: Include or Not?

August 31, 2015 by Stephen Satterly

The Special Education Dilemma in School Safety

The Learning Connection is on online community through the Indiana Department of Education. Recently a question was posted that gives much food for thought for students in special education. “Has any school dealt with students who are unable to participate in fire drills? If so, what procedures have you put in place to accommodate the children while satisfying the requirement to engage all students in the drill?” Schools with special education students often struggle with including such students in their safety plans. When do the needs of the students outweigh the safety needs of the school? Or do they?

Special Education students should be included with the rest of the students in safety drills.

Practice Realistically

There is an old sports saying, “Practice as you will play.” This basic truth is relevant to school safety. Everyone should practice safety drills as they would actually happen. It helps reduce errors, and will better assist in identifying gaps in planning.

This is especially true for students with special needs. I have seen some schools warn, some of their special education classes, about drills ahead of time. They feel it’s necessary to reduce the stress some of these students feel with the loud noises and world changing activity that occur with drills. While the concern is understandable, does it help them in an actual emergency? Emergencies occur without notice. Precious seconds can be lost attempting to assist students who react negatively to a sudden change in their routine. Not exposing these students to such situations until a real event, can put them and others at risk.

Individualized Education Plans and School Safety

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), special education students are required to have individualized plans. Different districts call them by different names, but the result should be the same. Identifying each child’s needs and a written plan specifying how their requirements are met, including emergency and safety issues. For children in special education programs, this requires additional scrutiny and thoughtfulness.

Will a special education student need more than one staff member to assist them? If so, who will it be? Will the student require special equipment, such as an evacuation chair to get a student down stairs? Will they need noise-reducing headgear to reduce audio stimulation? These and other similar questions may not be something considered for most students but for those with special needs they can be critical factors.

Just as a building’s age and characteristics would be considered in a facility’s safety plan, so should the uniqueness of special education students when identifying their safety requirements. In special education, individual needs are identified by a case conference committee, which includes the parents. This committee should then create a safety plan that includes the student’s involvement in safety drills.

As with all safety plans the input of local first responders should be sought whenever changes are made. This helps to ensure compliance with local, state and federal regulations. Never forget, the goal is to keep ‘everyone’ safe!

Filed Under: Stephen Satterly Tagged With: First Responders, Indiana Department of Education, Individuals with Disabilities Act, Learning Connection, safety plans, school safety, special education

Social Media’s Role in Safety

August 26, 2015 by Stephen Satterly

Social Media in Committing a Crime

Today a man, reportedly upset over a negative job situation, used social media to plan and carry out a shooting of a TV news crew in Moneta, VA. The man came up on WDBJ 7 reporter Alison Parker, who was interviewing of Vicki Gardner, a local Chamber of Commerce chairperson. In a video made by the gunman, he points the gun at Alison, calls her a name, and then lowers the gun. He seemingly waits until the cameraman has his camera on her, then opens fire. Alison and Adam were both killed, while Vicki was hospitalized, reportedly with a gunshot to her back. The shooter flees, and then posts the video to Twitter.

Alison Parker
(Photo courtesy of Fox News)

Adam Ward
(Photo courtesy of Fox News)

Social Media in Responding to a Crime

The use of social media during this incident highlights the many pluses and minuses of social media. When it happened, the news of what happened spread quickly, mainly due to Twitter and Facebook. The shooting occurred right before 7:00am Eastern, and by noon the identity of the shooter was known. While the use of social media to aid in communication seems a natural use of its capabilities, this must be tempered with the loss of context that often accompanies near-instant communication.

Many news outlets censored the footage of the interview and shooting, but the shooter had taken his own video and posted it to Twitter. From there it went to Facebook and other social media, giving people unedited access to the carnage. Whether this is good thing or not is for another time. However the importance of social media cannot be over-emphasized.

Social Media in Safety Planning

Anyone responsible for the safety of others should incorporate the uses of social media into their safety plans. It is a tool, and should be used as such. Planners should also prepare for the negative effects of social media, mainly disinformation and lack of context. Media protocols can be as important in responding to an incident as any other protocol, as the wrong information can increase the difficulty in responding to the incident.

Information travels so much more quickly today than ever before. We safety planners need to get a handle on this concept and use it to our advantage, or it will surely use us.

As with any such tragedy, let’s take some time to care for the wounded and grieve for our losses. Then let’s learn what lessons we can and make ourselves better.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Plain Language in School Transportation Emergencies

August 19, 2015 by Stephen Satterly

Are You Using Plain Language?

The first in a line of students boarding their morning school bus whispers to the driver, “Johnny’s got a knife!”. The driver now faces a set of critical decisions within the next few seconds. What steps can he take that would not further complicate the situation? Should he immediately notify someone, call for help? If he uses plain language, will it initiate a confrontation?

Source: Racine County Eye

Current Practice?

Many fleets use codes to communicate the existence of a situation on their bus. I found this was the procedure in our school’s transportation department after taking responsibility for the fleet. If a driver suspected a weapon was on the bus, they would radio in to the base that they were “invited to the wedding.” This would alert the base, who would then call 911.

One of the reasons given to me for this practice was that alerting the person that help was on its way would cause them to act rashly. Another was that openly communicating the threat could traumatize children riding in other buses who could overhear the broadcast. I understood their reasoning, their desire to keep things from escalating, and the powerful need to protect children from harm. But, was it really in the best interest of the students and did it align with the best approach to dealing with such a situation?

Plain Language is best!

The gold standard of planning is the National Incident Management System (NIMS). It is the framework provided by the Department of Homeland Security for state and local entities. It prepares them to mitigate, respond to and recover from a hazard. The reason for the development of NIMS is to achieve inter-operability across agencies, jurisdictions and disciplines. At the local level, this requires communicating clearly, concisely, and in plain language, so authorities can prepare and respond in the most effective manner.

If there is someone with a weapon, authorities need to know the type of weapon and any other pertinent information. The use of codes can cloud their understanding of the actual situation and events. The faster the response, the less likely events will get out of hand. Every complication increases the time it takes to prepare and get the right people in the right place. Using a code limits the information that can be passed and is open to interpretation, which can add a large degree of uncertainty as to what is actually occurring.

Simplify, Simplify, Simplify!

Research shows that a person under stress experiences numerous symptoms, among them a decline in cognitive function. They begin to lose the ability to think clearly. At such time, complications like a code only makes things more difficult for them.

During a critical moment on the school bus, the driver’s world narrows down to their bus and the person with the weapon. What a driver needs in such a high stress situation is simplicity. The fewer decisions they have to make, the more likely the choices made will be the right ones. Trying to remember a long list of procedures and codes is not something conducive to clear thinking.

The acronym often used in emergency planning is KISS, and plain language helps keep things simple.

Filed Under: Stephen Satterly Tagged With: codes, decision-making, knife, NIMS, plain language, school bus safety, school transportation

It All Depends – Situational School Security

August 14, 2015 by Michael Dorn

While school security experts typically recommend that fencing for schools permit open viewing to reduce crime, there are exceptions. Because this Florida school serves a number of autistic children and has a swamp located next to this side of the school, the installation of screening materials to conceal the water is both logical and prudent as many autistic children are attracted to bodies of water.

School security measures can be situational

Many people desire absolute answers when it comes to school safety. There have been several attempts to create a national school security codes similar to that of the national fire code. Each of these efforts have failed for a variety of reasons. The lack of some types of data for violence prevention in contrast to the fire science field is one reason for this. In addition, the many types and methodologies for violence are perhaps more complex than fire is. For example, when you install entry point metal detection at a school, an aggressor may simply shoot students on a school bus or as they wait in line to be screened. This means that the implementation of this approach can require additional solutions to prevent simply moving the attack site. When we install fire sprinklers in a school, the fire will not move to the parking lot to avoid the suppression system. Reviewing some of the standardized school security requirements that have been implemented at the state level reveals that these problems are a challenge even at that scale.

Setting standards can sometimes increase danger

Another reason it can be so difficult to establish set requirements for school security is that a textbook answer for most schools could increase danger in a school with a unique situation. As one example, while the research demonstrates that natural surveillance (improving the ability for people to see and be seen) reduces the opportunity for crime and the fear of crime, there are cases where improving natural surveillance can increase risk. Some of our independent schools educate children of famous people who could be at risk for abduction or even murder. We have clients who have individual students assigned with armed bodyguards all day, every day by their parents. The abduction for ransom of the daughter of a prominent pasta company owner from a Florida independent school many years ago is an excellent example of this very real risk. A kidnapper posing as the father’s bodyguard signed the girl out from an independent school using a fake letter from the child’s father. She was buried in a box in a swamp and held for ransom. For this reason, we advise some of our independent school clients with this type of risk to use visual barriers on fencing for playgrounds contrary to the normal practice of maintaining open sightlines.

Sometimes it simply all depends on the details

As one professor in my graduate business school program told us many years ago, the correct answer is sometimes IAD – it all depends. When a student asked for a clear cut answer to a specific management issue, the professor explained that the correct answer would depend on specific variables. He was not dodging the question but instead cautioning us to take care not to create absolute answers when it would be less effective to do so. School and public safety officials should heed this advice.

Filed Under: Safe Havens Blog

Back to School – Time to Review Your Safety Plans

August 12, 2015 by Stephen Satterly

Back to School

School districts around the country will be welcoming students back to classes. For most children it will seem like a fresh start, with new clothes, lockers and teachers. A new beginning can also mean an opportunity to start things off right; that should especially include emergency planning.

Back to school time is the perfect time to review the changing dynamics of a schools environment. New faces of staff, students and parents could mean a change in threat potential within the school’s population. Reviewing emergency procedures can help ensure they meet the needs of the school’s current situation.

Back to school is the time to review your plans.

Back to school time? Time to review your emergency plans!

Identify Risks

Last year’s school shooting at Reynolds High School in Oregon shows how important it is that schools are prepared to deal with new and emerging types of threats. Regular risk assessments help to identify new potential hazards and ways to mitigate them. Such assessments can also ensure resources are being directed effectively.

Create/Edit Emergency Plans

You can’t know if your emergency procedures are adequate unless you take the time to do a thorough review. A decision may be reached to keep the plan the same, edit it to address the current risks, or end a plan. Whether changes are made or not everything should be well documented, as you may have to defend your action later. This would be especially true when ending coverage of any potential threat.

Practice Life-Saving Steps

Everyone in an emergency has a role to play, which begins with keeping themselves safe. Thus, a school should be training all of its personnel in basic life-saving steps. This can be done in several, free-to-inexpensive ways. Scenario training is a simple, research-based and effective way to test an individual’s capabilities to make life-saving decisions in the first thirty seconds of a crisis. This can be as involved as the use of a training DVD series like Safe Topics, or as simple as thinking of a scenario, then asking a staff member, “What would you do?” Safe Havens has created The Window of Life to help guide people through these life-saving steps.

Practice Your Plans

Once you have developed a plan, you should find out whether it works or not BEFORE you have to use it. You do this by conducting exercises. These can be very involved, but they don’t have to be. Identify the plan you want to test, and think of a simple, realistic scenario that requires using the plan. Gather all the stakeholders; first responders, staff, parents, etc., and talk through what it would like like to implement the plan. This low-intensity process can reveal the plan’s strengths and weaknesses, and can serve as the basis for amending the plan.

Back to school time is an exciting time of the year. However, don’t let the excitement make you forget to review your safety plans. Identify your risks, create or edit your plans, make sure your people know their life-saving steps, and practice your plans. This will help make sure everyone is around to enjoy the next back to school time.

Filed Under: Stephen Satterly Tagged With: back to school, emergency planning, Reynolds High School Shooting, risk assessment, Safe Topics, The Window of Life