Since the formation of the Missouri Homeland Security Safe Schools Working Group numerous programs have been developed to achieve the goal of providing a safe learning environment for Missouri's students.

Emergency Response Information Plan (ERIP)

One of the first tasks of the Safe Schools Working Group was to evaluate existing school safety planning and to make recommendations to the HSAC. After evaluating existing school safety planning tools, the group voted unanimously to embrace the Emergency Resource Information Plan (ERIP), a web-based school emergency planning toolkit that ensured "best practice" consistency across the State of Missouri and also real-time first responder connectivity to the plans - including floor plans of specific schools, photos, diagrams, etc. - and to recommend that homeland security funds be spent to expand both the function and number of schools that would be given free access to a web-based school safety planning tool already being funded by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) in conjunction with the Missouri School Boards' Association (MSBA).

In December 2006, the HSAC embraced the working group's recommendation, and voted to fund the web-based planning tool (ERIP) to provide the tool to all public and non-public K-12, higher education, and registered day care institutions in Missouri. This tool allows law enforcement, fire, and other emergency responders to access participating school floor plans and other critical information via the web portal when responding to school emergencies. Over 70% of all schools in Missouri participate in ERIP, covering 75% of Missouri's K-12 school children.

• ERIP is a secure, server-based system that improves preparedness and mitigates emergencies, provided at no cost to all schools throughout Missouri.
• Promotes collaborative efforts of emergency planners (school and public safety) in developing better, NIMS-compliant plans in less time within a consistent, very customizable format by utilizing industry "Best Practices."
• First Responders can readily access ERIP via MERIS (Missouri Emergency Resource Information System) to obtain tactical response information such as floor plans, digital images, staff rosters, etc. when necessary.

ERIP Powerpoint

ERIP K-12 Best Practices Template

ERIP Powerpoint Overview

ERIP Overview

SafePlans Elementary ERIP Sample

Missouri Alert Network

The Missouri Alert Network was developed through a partnership between the Department of Public Safety (DPS), the Missouri School Boards' Association (MSBA), and Group Cast, a private vendor that provides alerting services to a wide variety of private and government interests. This initiative allows DPS to instantly contact school officials, who choose to participate in this free resource, in the event emergency information needs to be conveyed to them. This is done through a recorded voice message, as well as E-mail/text messages, to the individual so designated as the point of contact for each school district or system. All K-12 schools in Missouri, both public and private, can participate in this initiative for free. Currently, over 80 percent of the Missouri schools have chosen to take advantage of this opportunity. Higher Education institutions are also invited to participate. For more information and to sign up visit the Missouri School Boards' website.

Background Information and Key Questions

Higher Education Enrollment Form

Non Public School Enrollment Form

Public School Enrollment Form

Chemicals Cleanup Program

Under the umbrella of the Safe Schools Working Group, the DESE supported UMKC Center For Safe Schools has lead a sub-committee that is partnering with other state organizations such as the Department of Natural Resources and the State Emergency Management Agency, to identify ways to reduce the cost of removing un-needed and deteriorating hazardous chemicals from school labs and other locations in Missouri's schools. They have conducted several pilot projects where they have been able to drastically reduce this cost, and actually removed un-needed and deteriorating chemicals from a number of schools. Even more importantly, this program focuses on educating key school administration officials on safe storage and timely use of these chemicals, to avoid a situation where chemicals age and deteriorate. The Department of Natural Resources has developed a program to assist schools with the removal of such chemicals. For more information and to sign up go to the Department of Natural Resources website.

Bullying Prevention in Schools

The Department of Mental Health and the Department of Social Services are taking a leadership role, working with the Department of Health and Senior Services, professional school counselor associations, school nurses, and others, on identifying ways to address the issue of bullying in schools. Bullying has been identified in numerous national studies and is generally recognized as being one of the underlying causative factors in growing incidents of school violence.

Pandemic Planning for Schools

The Department of Health and Senior Services has found that the Safe Schools Working Group was the ideal mechanism to both obtain input and "buy-in" for pandemic planning efforts for schools in Missouri. The Working Group has participated in providing relevant input on what thresholds should trigger school closure in pandemic outbreaks, as well as other aspects of pandemic planning. This group has also been utilized as one of the primary mechanism to insure DHSS is engaging the broadest school audience in participation in pandemic planning for schools.