Disaster Communication Planning for Heads of Colleges

In instances of disaster, households and college students look to highschool leaders for stability, even when these colleges are closed as a result of catastrophe or tragedy. The current fires and flooding which have torn by means of communities throughout the nation are a tragic reminder that it will not be a query of if a disaster will happen in some unspecified time in the future, however when it’s going to occur. Colleges commonly evaluation security practices and maintain drills for hearth, evacuation, shelter in place, and different important actions that could be required when tragedy strikes. However there’s one disaster space that isn’t commonly practiced: communication.

Whereas nearly each college has an emergency handbook, hardly ever do they comprise details about how the college will talk each internally and externally throughout a disaster. Thankfully, heads of college can play an important function in making certain {that a} correct disaster communication plan is in place. By partnering with the advertising and communications workplace and addressing these steps prematurely, your college will be higher ready to speak each internally and externally when wanted.

Know your disaster communications response staff.

Most certainly, there’s a plan for who’s answerable for attending to the scholars and sweeping the lecture rooms, however there isn’t usually a plan in place for speaking throughout a disaster. Along with the captains answerable for pupil security, there must also be positions decided prematurely for speaking with college students, households, and the higher neighborhood. Every college ought to designate a staff of the highest 5 folks referred to as for in each state of affairs, together with somebody for communication.

Most individuals instantly consider media relations, and whereas sure, it’s vital to know who will subject media questions, disaster communication goes past that to incorporate documenting the state of affairs and figuring out the messaging that’s despatched out to the neighborhood. This function is commonly referred to as the recorder, and each emergency plan ought to listing the names and make contact with info for all authorised recorders.

An entire and thorough documentation of the method throughout a disaster will be helpful when recapping and reviewing the state of affairs, working with insurance coverage firms and authorities, and figuring out the messages that should be conveyed to the college neighborhood and past. Having one individual designated because the recorder—with a backup recorder additionally pre-determined—means different members of your disaster response staff and college know who to name and switch to at a second’s discover.

Along with a recorder, many colleges look to have backup help for sending info out shortly; these persons are a part of your disaster communication response staff. From electronic mail and social media to web site and dad or mum portal updates, it’s vital that you understand who has entry and the flexibility to make these updates—together with contact info—ought to a disaster happen outdoors of regular college hours.

This staff additionally must know talk with one another and the place they will meet, assuming it’s secure. Group chat choices are vital for making certain everyone seems to be on the identical web page, be it by way of convention calls or walkie-talkies. It’s additionally vital to find out a gathering place if the traces of communication are down, which ought to be stocked with mandatory provides they might want.

Set a protocol for speaking.

Sometimes, folks assume that the top of college is the spokesperson throughout a disaster, however the actuality is that the top will likely be coping with the precise state of affairs and can need assistance. Having a pre-planned chain of staff members who will be spokespeople—ideally members of your disaster communication response staff—permits for flexibility and consistency of message. Each member ought to be conversant in outreach strategies, messaging tone and language, and capable of log into all communication companies—make certain to check these prematurely.

Put together your messaging prematurely.

Each college ought to assess its most-likely disaster situations. Hearth, shelter in place, and evacuation are widespread examples, but it surely’s vital to determine what else might occur and what you would wish to speak. Many colleges have added energetic shooter and intruder drills in addition to much less apparent conditions, resembling sudden college closures, delays, and early dismissals.

Climate and acts of nature could not really feel like main crises, however current occasions have confirmed they are often. Colleges have to have a plan in place to handle these conditions shortly and infrequently at odd hours of the day. Excessive warmth, snow, lightning, storms, excessive winds, and even poor air high quality are all disaster conditions that probably ought to be in your listing, in addition to earthquakes, tornadoes, fires, and floods.

Predetermined and scripted messages provide you with time to assume throughout a disaster. Having messages pre-approved by the top of college, the board, and the communications division means that you can inform folks of the state of affairs and put together them for the way you’re going to ship follow-up info with out losing time.

These communications ought to all the time embody the identify of the college and the date and time of the message. Households with kids at completely different colleges have to know precisely who is looking and the way they will get extra info. Ending each scripted message with the identical line for get extra info by way of a URL, dad or mum portal, or telephone hotline will give them a strategy to verify in.

Decide the instruments you might want.

Understanding the conditions you might probably face helps you to draft a plan for every, together with the mandatory instruments. When your web and telephones go down unexpectedly minutes earlier than the dismissal rush, what are you going to do? Planning for one thing like this prematurely will allow you to get a message out shortly.

The established disaster headquarters ought to be stocked with a number of telephone traces, arduous wired web and wifi, a number of laptops, iPads, cell telephones, and walkie talkies to make sure you could attain the skin world. A radio and tv with native and cable information networks might help you monitor developments of an off-campus disaster which will relate to you and decide if networks are protecting your campus disaster state of affairs.

Don’t neglect to have ample charging stations with energy strips for powering a number of gadgets without delay in addition to backup power sources. Additional batteries and exterior chargers—together with a crank charger—will be helpful when energy is compromised, in addition to dongles and cords for connecting gadgets to these energy sources. You’ll additionally need to plan what to do if networks exit—so landlines, paper, and pencil provides must also be helpful—in addition to flashlights in case you’re at midnight.

Know the place and once you’ll talk.

Speaking a transparent and constant message throughout dozens of channels could be a problem, so streamlining your efforts is essential. It’s a good suggestion to create a disaster communications touchdown web page that serves as your fundamental hub for posting info, decreasing the danger of lacking an outlet or posting incorrect or incomplete info in a single location. Your staff can share a singular URL resembling myschool.org/emergency on social media and your different shops and direct all visitors to this hub.

Not each state of affairs wants rapid textual content messages and emails, so it’s vital to find out what’s warranted and when. Much less pressing conditions—a faculty cancellation with ample discover, for instance—may warrant an electronic mail and web site replace solely, whereas an sudden closure or early dismissal requires telephone calls and textual content messages to make sure that households and the neighborhood obtain info shortly. 

It’s additionally vital to find out outreach frequency. A quick-moving state of affairs that entails the authorities may warrant web site updates in your disaster hub web page each 15–half-hour and communication by way of electronic mail and/or telephone and textual content each 1–2 hours. A slow-developing state of affairs resembling a damaged water fundamental may want an preliminary message warning of potential closures the day earlier than, a fast replace in your web site hub a number of hours later, after which nothing till the subsequent morning when speaking a closing resolution. 

It’s also possible to use your emergency outreach companies to trace the success of your message and decide if some households want extra private outreach to make sure they acquired the knowledge.  

Have a continuity plan.

Guarantee you have got a plan if the college could also be closed for an prolonged interval—resembling throughout a healthcare disaster or when amenities are broken or destroyed. Decide how you’ll proceed speaking with households, college, and employees and educate your college students remotely. Many colleges needed to scramble in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic to supply distance studying, some extra efficiently than others. Whereas no person needs to return to these days, it’s a good suggestion to be ready by practising digital assignments and assessments, on-line class discussions, and so forth. If you’re a Blackbaud buyer, these assets could also be useful. 

Set expectations inside your neighborhood.

One of the simplest ways to make sure correct communication is to arrange your neighborhood. Allow them to know that you’ve got an emergency response course of and take a look at it greater than as soon as. Share the URL of your disaster hub touchdown web page and encourage households to bookmark it. As well as, inform households of your plan throughout a shelter-in-place situation, the place college students will go when evacuating the campus, and the way they will reunite with their kids in every case.

If households know what to do, the place to get info, and the way you’re going to speak, they may really feel extra assured throughout a disaster and will likely be much less inclined to inundate the college’s telephone traces.

Whereas nobody can actually anticipate each want throughout a disaster, planning for correct communication each internally and externally could make all of the distinction.

This weblog was initially printed in 2021 and up to date in 2025.