Back to school — when students and staff return

  Support students and families to help them feel safe and to promote healing and a sense of normalcy.

• Develop a re-entry plan, such as tours of the building, where students and their parents can return to school for a short time and feel comfortable.
• Help people feel safe. Make sure parents and students know about the presence of new adults in the building, such as police, mental health counselors, and volunteer door and hall monitors. Encourage parents to be in the school as volunteer support, door monitors, etc.
• Decide on the first-day schedule. Do you want to have a half or full day of classes? Some schools begin with having students meet and talk with the teacher whose class they were in when the tragedy struck. Schools also should have mental health professionals available.
• Provide meaningful opportunities to mark the occasion. Consider whether you want to start the day with a moment of silence. Students might write letters to those injured or thank-you notes to the first responders.
• Offer the option of homeschooling to those who can’t return to school.
• Develop routines that make students feel secure, such as rules about leaving the building, student movement in hallways and staircases, and reporting suspicious incidents.

Provide support for staff so they feel capable of being caregivers and educators.

• Actively listen to staff concerns and issues. Reflect concerns back to staff, providing support and answering questions.

 

• Have a meeting with all staff, administrators and mental health professionals before school starts to discuss curriculum and talking points. Click here for sample.
• Ensure office staff knows the latest developments and has a script for answering phone calls.
• Set up a “safe room” where staff can go for a break or to seek guidance from a mental health professional.
• Have substitute teachers available to take over classes if teachers need a break.
• Make mental health support available in the classroom and throughout the building.

  Provide classroom activities for teachers to use with students. Click here for sample.

Take care of staff. Have volunteers bring lunch and snacks for staff members.

Take care of the community by inviting first responders to visit the school and serve them a “thank-you” lunch on a day students are not present.

Consider operational issues that make staff and students feel more comfortable. For example, think about changing the sounds of the fire and emergency alarms. Also consider changing the “look” of affected parts of the building; don’t use rooms where violence, injuries or death occurred; and visually block off damaged areas.

  Manage media coverage of the first day back. Establish policies regarding media presence on school grounds and in the building. Establish a perimeter for photographers and satellite trucks. Set guidelines on still and videocameras in the building. Consider holding a meeting or conference call with the media prior to the first day back to set the tone and parameters for the day. Remember the goal is to establish a normal routine, heal and foster a sense of safety. Host a media tour when students are NOT in school, so reporters have footage to use later. Click here for protocols.