calm; and informing parents and helping them reunite with their kids. Transportation providers also need to be in constant communication with local officials and the larger community. “School districts should leverage every tool avail-
able when communicating during a crisis,” noted Deb Hileman, president and CEO of the Institute for Crisis Management. “There are a variety of notification systems and apps that enable school officials to communicate quickly and directly with parents and other stakeholders. Mass notification systems—think reverse 911, social me- dia and other web-based messaging are powerful tools to connect with stakeholders during an event.” Hileman, who facilitated a panel on crisis planning by
student transportation departments at last month’s STN EXPO Indianapolis, noted that it’s important for drivers and officials to avoid stoking fear and panic, both during a crisis and in preparing for one. “I think of the storm drills I participated in decades
ago. Remember duck and cover?” she said. “While drills are critical in preparing children for a variety of potential issues, I advise taking a thoughtful approach to the con-
tent of the drills. We want students to feel both ready and safe when something occurs. There is a fine line from concern to panic that changes as children get older, so drills and messages for elementary students should differ from those for high school students.” Schools and transportation departments have drilled
and prepared for natural and man-made disasters, even nuclear war, for decades, but COVID-19 came as a totally new challenge for many districts. Hileman said this should be a wakeup call. “COVID-19 has laid bare the gaps in crisis commu-
nications planning and mitigation across all kinds of organizations, including school districts,” she added. “Pandemic plans created in 2009 after the H1-N1 out- break languished on shelves for a decade.” Martha Allen, assistant director of transportation for
the Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township in Indiana, explained how her department periodically revises its plans and procedures based on the constantly changing status of the pandemic. “When [COVID-19] first began, everyone was sent home due to stay-at-home orders; we used our bus staff
54School Transportation News • NOVEMBER 2021
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