Libr271A_Elliot_PolicyReport_Fall2013

Policy Report
[I]n recent years, particularly since 9/11, there has been renewed
focus on preparing the public in advance for risk. There has also been a
growing acknowledgment among some disaster planners that the
unique needs of children in disasters deserve special consideration
(Ryan et al., 2012, 300).

According to the Buildings and Infrastructure Protection Series:

Primer to Design Safe School Projects in Case of Terrorist Attacks and
School Shootings published by FEMA (2012) as part of the American
Homeland Security Division, many strategies exists in helping schools
and libraries become better prepared for unique emergencies, like
shootings and terrorist attacks in particular. The physical design and
infrastructure of school and library buildings can act as prepared
protection, and adult staff persons within the building(s) can potentially
feel more confident in their safety possibilities if such violent
emergency situations were to occur. Of course, it is a given that
children will most likely be present in both a school and library
environments, thus it becomes necessary for educators, librarians, and
administrative staff who are responsible for their safety and well-being,
to also be aware of the unique needs of children in times of
emergencies and violent threats, as posed by authors of the passage
above. Ryan et. al. (2012) also point to the fact that being truly
prepared for unforeseen emergency situations involves genuine
motivation for preparedness, and one motivating factor in particular is
fear as an intervention strategy (303). This paper aims to explore

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several specific recommendations made by FEMA, as well as

investigate the concept of how fear-induced awareness of potential
dangerous scenarios can lead to more sufficient emergency
preparedness, as we will see in discussing Ready or not, here it comes
(Ryan et. al., 2012). In utilizing both the FEMA guide to buildings and
infrastructure protection, as well as heeding the suggestion that fear
and perceived efficacy can be motivating factors that can best
prepare public workplaces for different types of man-made, violent
emergencies, schools and libraries can cultivate the best emergency
preparedness possible.
Discussion on Emergency Preparedness: Adults Preparing
Children and Adults Preparing Themselves
In Ready or not, here it comes, authors Ryan et. al. (2012)
address the fact that definitions of disasters in particular are one of the
most imperative elements to establish early on in any school or library
emergency or disaster preparedness strategy. Such disaster definitions
are important for creating vivid, real-world imagery that instates a
sense of fear, and a sense of urgency, in being prepared for a variety
of potential risks. However, in a school or library setting questions
should arise here, such as, how much should the children really know
and what situations are appropriate to describe to a classroom? (Ryan
et. al., 2012). This paper agrees with the authors, that such emergency
situation descriptions and the details of potential emergencies must

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also be dependent on the age, and thus, be presented in an open and

age-appropriate manner. These questions become particularly relevant
in the emergency situations that are posed by the hypothetically
violent scenarios of a school (or library) shooting and/or terrorist
attack, as is the focus of the FEMA recommendations, which will be
discussed in the next section.
Adults are responsible for the overall safety of the children in
their care, yet, there are some ways in which adults can also prepare
the children themselves, that will help children think critically in
emergency situations of different magnitudes. In preparing children for
optimal safety in emergency situations, the authors emphasize that
there is an important emerging trend of promoting childrens
readiness (305). This trend is supported by the federal government,
as it has created three distinct but related all- hazards disaster
preparedness websites for children that covers everything from
tornadoes to terrorism, the websites are directed at different age
groups (305). These online resources, full of interactive games that
help children of all ages interact with characters that are in emergency
situations, are supposed to help form valuable critical thinking skills
that foster a childs awareness and self-reliance in states of emergency.
Furthermore, particularly relevant to safety in school and in
libraries, the authors introduce a remarkable way to emotionally and

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intellectually prepare children for fear-inducing emergencies, a

strategy that uses fairy tales and folklore:
[t]here is evidence, of course, that children cannot only cope with fear,
but may learn important lessons from it. Research on fairy tales and
folklore has demonstrated that exposing children to controlled violence
or fearallows for healthy parent-child discourse, and encourages
children to approach scary situations with cautionThe key is that any
violence or fear-provoking situations need to be quickly countered with
forces of goodThus, teaching fear through fairy tales is an effective
method of teaching children about safety, and can in turn improve
their judgment and critical thinking in scary situations (304).

This strategy recommendation can be absolutely implemented in

either school or library settings, because it utilizes storytelling
materials that both institutions should already be familiar with.
Educators and librarians can carve out time for emergency
preparedness, where they can easily incorporate elements of folktales
and other stories that emphasis what children can do when they
become frightened or sense danger. Such a preparatory activity should
be fun and engaging for children, while still allowing for a natural
discourse about emergency and frightening situations to be brought up
and guided with discussion with adults and peers. As the authors also
suggest, these interactive storytelling methods will help improve
childrens judgment and critical thinking skills in times when they are
most needed, such as in times of a potential school or library
emergency.
Enacting such emergency preparedness storytelling with children
should insight a sense of fear and urgency within the adult staff

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involved at the school or library as well. Again, the authors inform us

that fear appears to be a great motivator as long as individuals
believe they are able to protect themselvesa concept known as
perceived efficacy (303). Such efficacy can be further understood
as one of two descriptions,
[R]esponse efficacy, or whether the person believes that anything
can be done about the risk, and self-efficacy, which refers to whether
the person believes he or she has the power as an individual to
perform the behavior, or ones sense of competence and confidence
in performing behaviors to achieve a desired outcome (303).

Thus, the crucial task of adults who work with children is not just to
keep the children as safe as possible during an unforeseen emergency,
but to further be aware of how their own fears about emergency
situations should motivate them to be better prepared, to ensure
confidence in themselves within their protective role. Just as the
storytelling about fearful situations informs children of their own selfreliant skills, adults, too, must feel confident that they can positively
impact a negative situation that is well prepared for. These
recommendations for creating a critical awareness and self-confidence
in adults are utterly imperative to the overall emergency preparedness
that a school or library workplace can possess. The implementation of
these recommendations are indeed feasible, if proper motivating steps
are taken, as there are many pre-organized resources available for
adults to feel confident in their knowledge and abilities during a
potential emergency.

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As a LIS student working in an elementary school library, and

myself can testify that much time is already devoted to a schools
overall emergency preparedness, in rehearsing (several times a year)
emergency response actions, anything from search and rescue teams
who must locate and extract children who are pseudo-trapped, to
taking fast and accurate attendance to see if any children are missing
or unaccounted for. The discussions of what staff members are
particularly afraid of, as well as validated one anothers fears by giving
feedback and behavioral suggestions on how to respond in certain
emergencies, can easily happen at designated all-staff meetings.
Perhaps even meeting in smaller teams to discuss personal- and teamresponsibilities, are all feasible emergency preparedness options for a
school and/or library, because they are important. This paper promotes
the building of self-awareness and self-confidence for emergencies as a
professional asset that cannot be ignored, and thus, it must (and can)
be supported when proper time and preparation is allowed, all of which
could be effectively implemented in my workplace. Building a more
confident staff can only ensure the greater safety of the children, (and
the school-library) community as a whole, while also promoting the
idea that the children themselves need emotional and intellectual
preparation for emergencies through storytelling and other avenues.
Again, this is feasible at my workplace; as such storytelling and
discussions of fear can take place both within the classrooms, as well

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as in the library, for specially designated emergency preparedness

days.
Moving on to the next section, we will see the necessity for
supervising adults in both school and library settings to also take into
consideration several recommendations made by FEMA, while still
embracing the fear-induced but well-prepared confidence that their
rehearsed actions can support in times of crises.
What Schools and Libraries Can Learn From FEMA: In the Event
of a Shooting or Terrorist Attack
The Buildings and Infrastructure Protection Series: Primer to
Design Safe School Projects in Case of Terrorist Attacks and School
Shootings published by FEMA (2012) successfully provides vivid
imagery of many potentially violent emergency scenarios, including
photos of vulnerable sprawling school buildings that are adjacent to
major streets as well as descriptions of potentially threatening
scenarios (2-7). In reading and reviewing the Protection Series, adult
staff members of schools and libraries will be faced with descriptive
imagery that should induce a sense of urgency, and a sense of fear,
that can motivate them towards specific preparedness strategies.
Although this resource in its entirety can seem overwhelming, in both
its scope and its length in detailed recommendations, let us focus on
some overarching and thematic emergency preparedness
considerations. For the purposes of a school or library working with the

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emergency policies they might already have in place, FEMA

thematically suggests that knowing the full layout of ones workplace
building can highlight its potential strengths and vulnerabilities in its
infrastructure (including the placement of windows, outside-access
points, etc.), which can bolster the actual preparedness and protective
strategies against shootings and/or terrorist attacks (2-9).
For example, in knowing the buildings positioning relative to its
surroundings, like streets, sidewalks, or crosswalks, etc., a school or
library can thus know its level of exit- and entrance-security and where
in the building the staff and children are most vulnerable or most
secure. FEMA also points out that being aware of outside vegetation,
like trees, bushes, gardens, etc., (and how the vegetation might help or
hinder an intruders attack), can help adult staff recognize or create
optimal visibility for surveillance. These two thematic
recommendations are relatively simple to be aware of, and only require
an easy walk-through of the buildings by a trained professional, like an
engineer or architect who is also trained in building vulnerabilities and
emergency preparedness. Such buildings tours might also point out to
adult staff persons that architectural designs, like basement windows,
should be considered both common access point for intruders, as they
can be reversely used as a means of secondary escape for those
inside the building who are in danger (F-39). For instance, my
workplace shares a building with an adjacent high school, so having all

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staff know both buildings, in layout and in their vulnerabilities to

outside threats and intruders, can increase the chances of actual
preparedness for emergency situations.
Lastly, FEMA includes a valuable chart showcased at the end of
the resource, consisting of both vulnerability questions and
descriptive reactionary guidance meant specifically for library/media
centers in response to their potential vulnerabilities, in terms of
building positioning and internal layout of inhabited spaces. Some
examples of such vulnerability questions, questions that can
stimulate specific awareness for library staff, are as follows: Are the
librarys or media centers reception area and circulation desk located
near the main entrance and positioned to control traffic in and out of
the area? (F-29). This is followed by the guidance recommendation:
The reception area or circulation librarian should be placed in a
central location near the main entry to police student traffic (F-29).
Another example is the vulnerability question, Do the librarys or
media centers reception area and circulation desk positions have
unobstructed surveillance of the entire area and can all users be
monitored?, in which the response is the guidance: Low stacks
(maximum 4 feet high) parallel to the librarians line of sight help
accomplish this. Shelves along walls can be full height (F-29).

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Both questions outline a clear and definitive detail in a buildings

characteristics and/or layout that raises the librarians and staffs
awareness to how furniture placement and library layout can aid in
emergency preparedness. The guidance can then help improve the
protection and safety of the children and staff within the library or
media center, as well as influence and inform future restorations or
changes in layout that will aide in the creation of the safest designs, for
emergencies and otherwise. Furthermore, if the answers to the
vulnerability questions presented above were no, than simple
solutions, like rearranging furniture, stations, or desk orientations, can
be easily altered to make the area its safest. These recommendations
are both easy and preventative, and physically help the area and its
occupants feel more secure. In knowing that such recommendations
were considered, and that proper guidance was executed, a bolstered
sense of self-confidence within the adult staff will can be called upon in
emergency situations.
Conclusively, in knowing the potential true realities that can take
place during a plethora of man-made and natural disasters, Ryan et. al.
informs us that both adults and children need to fostered an awareness
of threats to their safety. In combination with FEMAs direct and
descriptive details about spatial layouts and building infrastructure,
many precautionary recommendations can help adult staff checklist
their workplace buildings vulnerabilities and strength. This awareness

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of what locations within the building are safe, and which are
vulnerable, adds to the adult staffs sense of confidence, which is an
important asset adding to the overall preparedness of a school or
library. As this paper demonstrates, not only one avenue of emergency
preparedness can always be appropriate for any school and library
environments. Total preparedness requires adults to emotionally and
cognitively prepare children for potentially frightening scenarios, as
well as it requires the adults themselves to discuss and be aware of
their own fears and issues, in order for confidence in adult protective
actions during an emergency can prevail.

Sources
FEMA, U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (2012). Buildings and
infrastructure
protection series: Primer to design safe school
projects in case of terrorist
attacks and school shootings.
Retrieved from
http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/st/bips07_428_schools.pdf
National Clearinghouse For Educational Facilities. (2012). NCEF
resource list:
Disaster preparedness and response for
schools. Retrieved from
http://www.ncef.org/rl/disaster.cfm?date=4
Ryan, E. L., Hocke, T. M., Hilyard, K. M. (2012) Ready or not, here it
comes. Journal of Children and Media, 6(3), 300-316. Retrieved from
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2011.630740.

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