Program Rationale

Dealing with crisis and death are an inevitable part of living. Schools must be aware of the threats that exist which can create a school-wide crisis. At the school level it is important not to ignore the impact of death or a catastrophic event in order to assist in the healing process and stabilize the school function.

School staff, students, and their families are impacted by these events that can be significantly disruptive and debilitating to the normal equilibrium of a school community.

It is important that school district staff are organized, knowledgeable, trained, and skilled to respond to and provide appropriate crisis, grief, and trauma intervention services and programs to students, families, and staff in need.

To effectively manage grief and/or trauma responses, following a death/crisis, it is critical that school staff be proactive in the delivery of services. Schools must have systematic procedures, trained/skilled staff, and a broad-based understanding of grief, trauma, and crisis intervention practices to effectively handle a crisis event. It is important that schools not wait until a tragedy occurs to develop procedures or train staff. Proactive thinking, planning, and organization are key to normalizing a crisis and returning a school to safe and calm operations.

The program structure and procedures that follow allow our school district to be sensitive and responsive to the impact of death/crisis on students, parents, staff, and community.