Student Reunification and How It Works

One of the most important aspects of school crisis preparedness is the process of reunification, the process of parents and students safely reuniting following a school emergency. These emergencies can include fire, natural disaster, chemical spill, gas leak or other hazardous events, and violent intruder/active shooter events. The need to safely evacuate and then reunite students with their parents or legal guardians is a top priority. This process can be overwhelming if staff are untrained or poorly trained to handle the process.

There are a number of factors that may also make the reunification process stressful, they may include:

• Lack of training

• Lack of practice

• Type of emergency, size of emergency

• Response to emergency, community involvement

• Lack of prior collaboration with first responders

• Lack of crisis communication plan

• Parent response

• Media response

• Traffic challenges

Our experienced instructors will provide you with tools and training to lead you through a reunification process to include how to engage with first responders, parents and the community.