- Continue communications with affected members to determine what support is needed. As time passes, people have an unrealistic expectation that everything should be “back to normal.” It’s important to recognize that healing is a long journey, not a sprint, and staff will need ongoing support and encouragement.
- Be advocates for change. Make sure the safety needs of members are being met, and new programs and policies are put in place as needed.
- Provide expressions of caring. Have association liaisons visit the school on a regular basis, bringing goodies or mementos.
- Provide resources. Link members with colleagues in other schools where similar traumas have occurred, so they can share and learn from each other.
- Contact national trauma experts to provide information to staff.
Handling donations
- Check state laws and regulations that govern the collection of donations before developing a process for accepting donations.
- Start a memorial fund. If a member was lost, consider a scholarship fund to honor him or her. Coordinate with school efforts.
- Help with implementation of scholarship funds. Educators know what kinds of scholarships are most useful for their school or district and how to administer them. Offer to help establish a process for operating the scholarship program.
- Ask volunteers to catalog gifts and write thank-you notes. Retired members are eager to help with these types of tasks.
- Work with the school and district to coordinate efforts. If donations and gifts are received by the NEA, make sure there is a process for informing the school and district, determining how to allocate funds, and displaying or storing gifts.
Managing memorial activities
- Participate in planning memorial events. Ask the school and school district how you can help. Contact potential guest speakers. Encourage outside groups and politicians to be respectful and let the school community plan the memorials.
- Assure that the memorial events honor staff, both victims and caregivers.
- Identify symbols that help support the school. By developing a memorial pin or ribbon, the association can show solidarity with the teachers at the affected school. Funds raised can go to meet staff needs.
- Make sure teachers at the affected school receive the memorial pins and ribbons. Sometimes the affected staff members are overlooked as everyone else in the community wears a symbol of remembrance.
- Determine if staff members need their own memorial event. Do members in the local and state associations want to do their own honoring of fallen staff?
- Provide resources from other schools. Other teachers who have experience in memorial events can share their experience and advice.
- Work with the media. You can provide the media with factual information about school safety and how the community has healed as well as recommendations about covering events without retraumatizing victims.