A Successful Approach to School Safety Starts with Community Involvement

Emergency Operations Plans (EOPs) form the foundation of a school district’s preparedness and crisis-response strategy. When developed and used effectively, they serve as living documents that inform daily decision-making, guide drills and exercises and support coordinated action during an emergency. A functional EOP captures critical information—campus layouts, building schematics, student and staff considerations, communication protocols, hazard-specific annexes and continuity-of-operations procedures. It provides the structure that educators and emergency responders rely on when seconds matter.

However, in practice, this level of preparedness is not the norm. Across the United States, many school EOPs are outdated, incomplete or disconnected from actual response capabilities. Even as state regulations evolve, districts frequently struggle to translate compliance requirements into operationally ready plans. This challenge crosses urban, rural, and suburban boundaries and is not confined to districts with limited financial resources. The issue is systemic: schools often lack the expertise, staffing capacity and cross-agency involvement needed to build a high-functioning emergency operations plan.

Most states do not have enough trained personnel to assist districts in developing or reviewing their plans. Oversight systems commonly rely on self-reporting rather than detailed evaluation, leaving blind spots unaddressed. School administrators—already managing instructional, operational, and community responsibilities—are often tasked with writing or revising EOPs despite having limited backgrounds in emergency planning, NIMS/ICS alignment, hazard annex development, or inclusive planning for students with disabilities and multilingual families. As a result, many plans exist more as compliance artifacts than as functional tools for managing emergencies.

One of the most underutilized resources available to school districts is the surrounding community. Concerns about liability, confidentiality or criticism can lead districts to limit collaboration, but doing so often results in plans that lack realism or operational depth. In contrast, involving community stakeholders—parents, caregivers, local emergency managers, law enforcement, fire services, and other partners—can significantly strengthen both the quality and credibility of an EOP.

Community involvement brings several advantages. Local emergency managers and first responders possess expertise in hazard analysis, command structure, communication pathways, and coordinated response—elements that are difficult for districts to develop in isolation. Parents and community members can identify communication gaps, accessibility concerns, and unique student needs that may otherwise go overlooked. When these groups participate in the planning process, schools gain a more comprehensive understanding of how emergencies unfold and how to prepare for them.

For community members, engagement can start with simple steps: asking administrators whether the Emergency Operations Plan is available for review, inquiring whether local responders participated in its development, and offering time or expertise to assist with improvements. Transparency and collaboration not only strengthen the plan but also build public trust.

Ultimately, effective school emergency planning is a shared responsibility. Strong EOPs are not created in isolation; they emerge from coordinated work between schools, municipalities, emergency responders, and the communities they serve. By embracing community involvement, school districts enhance their operational readiness, reduce liability exposure, and contribute to a more resilient public-sector safety ecosystem.

*The views and opinions expressed in the Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA) blogs/podcasts are those of each respective author/speaker. The views and opinions do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of PRIMA.*