The “What if Wednesday" school safety initiative is designed to stimulate a conversation about school emergency preparedness. Participants should read the summary of the fictional school safety incident and then answer the multiple choice question with the appropriate response action to be taken for the specific emergency.
Recent What If Wednesdays:
- March 29th, 2023: What considerations should be made when developing your school/school district threat assessment capacity?
- February 15th, 2023: What safety measures need to be considered when planning after school activities?
- January 25th, 2023: In what ways should first responders be included in school emergency planning?
- January 4th, 2023: Who should be a part of a Behavioral Threat Assessment Team?
- November 29th, 2022: When planning school crisis response, what can be done to include plans for students with special needs and considerations?
- October 12th, 2022: Considerations for planning school safety drills and exercises
- August 31st, 2022: What should you do when you are conducting an Options-Based Response to an Active Shooter training in your school community?
- January 13th, 2022: A parent arrives at the school to discuss bullying that their child is experiencing in school. The parent becomes very agitated and uses inappropriate language toward staff. What should you do?
- December 14th, 2021: At the time of dismissal, the sound of potential gunshots are heard. What steps do you take?
- July 22nd, 2021: What actions should be taken by school leadership in an effort to enhance school's emergency preparedness initiatives over summer break?
- May 19, 2021: An unknown adult is seen in the school hallway with no visitor's pass or credentials. What actions should be taken?
- May 5th, 2021: A custodial parent arguement is overheard in the school parking lot. What should your reactionary steps be?
- February 20th, 2021: A concerning note, containing threats of violence, is discovered in the school. What steps should be taken?
- December 9th, 2020: A bomb threat is discovered on school grounds. What actions do you take?
- October 28th, 2020: A student has not returned from recess, and a fellow student advised that the student was seen walking near the parking lot. What steps should be taken?
- October 14th, 2020: An unknown person is discovered walking in the school without identification. What process is in place for this situation?
- September 23rd, 2020: September is Emergency Preparedness month. What information needs to be shared with staff and students to enhance their ability to respond to an emergency?
- February 5th, 2020: A school staff member indicates that her husband was recently violent and may come to the school. What do you do with this information?
- January 22nd, 2020: A parent informs the school that they are concerned about the discovery of information related to obtaining guns and incidents of school violence on their child's computer. What would you do with this information?
- January 8th, 2020: A parent of a student is served a restraining order preventing them from contacting the child. The parent is also not to step foot on school property. What do you do with this information?
- December 12th, 2019: What things should be considered during your family reunification process, after an evacuation of the school has occurred?
- October 16th, 2019: A weekend lightning strike has disabled the school's fire alarm system. It cannot be repaired until midweek. What precautionary efforts need to be taken to assure safety of students and staff? What are your public messaging needs?
- September 18, 2019: During National Preparedness Month it’s important to highlight the “all hazards” approach to emergency preparedness. What should schools consider?
- August 28th, 2019: What topics should be discussed and/or reviewed with school faculty and staff prior to the start of academic year?
- July 24th, 2019: What aspects should be discussed with local first responders when developing a school Emergency Operations Plan (EOP)?
- June 26th, 2019: A severe car accident has occured in the school parking lot during the morning hours of a school day. There are multiple people that sustained serious injuries. What needs to be considered when responding to the incident?
- May 20th, 2019: Your school is evacuated due to smoke in the building. How do you provide messaging for your school community? What information do you provide?
- May 8th, 2019: A confrontation between school staff members has occured on school property, resulting in injuries. What should be considered when issuing communication to the school community and public?
- April 10th, 2019: A student is missing from the classroom. What steps should be taken?
- March 27th, 2019: Lockout, Lockdown, or Shelter in Place? What action would your school take if you were notified of a violent domestic dispute occuring in close proximity to the school?
- March 4th, 2019: A young and potentially armed male is observed walking toward the front of a school during school hours. What steps should you take after observing this?
- February 6th, 2019: Your school is made aware that a student has made some concerning “posts” on social media about possibly harming a teacher. What steps should be taken?
- January 9th, 2019: An armed robbery has taken place in close proximity to your school. What actions should you take?
- December 19, 2018: A traffic accident involving hazardous materials occurs in close proximity to the school, requiring immediate evacuation. Reunification will not occur for several hours. What items should be a part of your reunification plan?
- November 28, 2018: A district school bus had been in a collision and there are reports of student injuries. What steps do you take?
- October 10, 2018: A non-custodial parent is attempting to pick up their child at school. What steps should you take?
- September 26, 2018: When thinking about your individual response actions to an active shooter or violent intruder, what should you consider?
- August 15, 2018: Prior to the start of the new year, which items should faculty and staff be familiar with?
- April 11, 2018: A teacher calls the main office to report that one of their students is missing.
- March 7, 2018: The school intercom system announces a Lockdown and you hear what sounds like gunfire.
- January 31, 2018: When determining an appropriate family reunification location, what should you consider?
- January 3, 2018: Frozen pipes and no heat force a building evacuation.