We offer all-hazards emergency planning for schools. We have a track record of success.

We assess the unique circumstances at your campus. Then, we create site-specific plans which we train, drill and exercise to national standards (DHS, FEMA, ASIS, EPA, OSHA). We structure your emergency team. We structure your emergency team; develop command control and communications procedures that employ the National Incident Command System (NIMS); and get you ready to coordinate with your local emergency services personnel. But we also plan for the unthinkable.

• Active Shooter and Bomb Threat: An Active Shooter is every campus’s worst nightmare. Many have written procedures, but haven’t conducted sufficient training. Without training that includes exercises with local emergency responders, students and faculty are not prepared to react when a disaster happens. We do the same for bomb threats—so common on campuses everywhere. Active shooter training is a major component of what we do – read more about our active shooter training here.
• Lockout is arguably more important than Lockdown. If the guy with a gun is outside, what is your response? Lockdown is wrong! Do you have procedures and training to Lockdown the building the Active Shooter occupies while ordering Lockout for other buildings?
• Chemical Spill: What will you do if a chlorine truck spills its load on your road or street? Evacuation will get people killed. How do you respond instantaneously? The recent chemical spill in West Virginia highlights this often-overlooked threat.
• Natural Disasters: Is your school prepared to recover from the next Hurricane Sandy, lightning, tornado or a major earthquake? We prepare you to deal with evacuation, shelter-in-place, recovery when the situation is over, or to resume operations if the effects are long-term.
• Command, Control & Communications: No procedures can work without structuring an effective emergency response team composed of your faculty and staff. When the emergency strikes, you must have smart commanders who can effect control through an agile team of adults – all of whom must be able to communicate with each other and with students, emergency responders, parents, and trustees.
• Training:  Great plans are a smart thing; training is everything. If you don’t get the words off the paper and into everyone’s heads, you have failed. We have trained 21,000 employees over the last 12 years. When surveyed after training, 98.5% said they were confident that they could effectively respond to any emergency. Our Promise: You give us two hours annually, and we’ll give you back trained employees ready to respond to any emergency on your campus.

Even when plans are in place, many campuses are still exposed to risks.

In the Government Accountability Office’s 2007 report to congress, the GAO reported that many campuses and school districts have developed basic emergency preparation procedures. This was great news, but it came with a caveat, as the tragedy in Newton, CT would soon prove. The report stated:

“Some plans lack key elements such as procedures for special needs students, plans for continued student education in the event of an extended closure, and procedures for training regularly with first responders…Although most school district plans address emergency situations arising from intruders or hostages, bombs or bomb threats, and natural disasters, a smaller percentage of school districts address pandemic influenza, anthrax, or radiological hazards.”

This investigation identified a universal lack of training of all adults on campus as well as a universal lack of coordination with local emergency services to include walk-throughs and exercises —even the lack of coordinated planning with police, fire and, ambulance responders.

Don’t let your facility fall behind. Call us and make sure you’re prepared for any eventuality.

If you have been searching for a qualified emergency planning professional, look no further.

62% of school districts surveyed by the GAO indicated a primary challenge to implementing emergency planing stemmed from a lack of access to personnel with experience in emergency planning.

Bo Mitchell, President and CEO of 911 Consulting, has developed plans for major universities and colleges plus a long list of K-12 institutions (see the complete list here). He completely understands the challenges, both technical and emotional, that arise when planning for the worst at your campus.

Bo understands that emergency management at your campus is a cultural issue at its core. Plans and training have to recognize the unique culture of your students, faculty, administration, trustees and parents.

Bo has spoken at safety conferences nationwide including FEMA’s annual conference for higher education. He has a long history of preparing educational institutions for all kinds of emergencies. His work and guidance has been featured in the Northeast Colleges and Universities Security Association (NECUSA) journal. He has spoken at numerous campuses to help them understand the threats they face. After the Sandy Hook tragedy, he was chosen to speak at the National Association of Independent Schools national convention, as well as several NAIS regional chapters on “The Newton Tragedy: Lessons and Implications for Your School.”

In short: your students and faculty couldn’t be in better hands than those of 911 Consulting and Bo Mitchell.

Our emergency planning services for schools are comprehensive. Contact us for more information.

Make sure your emergency preparedness is up to standard. Check what you want to fortify and what you want to add to your current plan, then contact us. We’ll discuss your needs, provide an estimate, and get to work so you’re protected from unnecessary risk.