Running head: BENCHMARK: ADVERSE SITUATIONS 1

Benchmark: Adverse Situations

Lekisha Morris

Grand Canyon University: EAD 536

7/19/2021
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Benchmark: Adverse Situations

Sunset Hills is a K-8 school that is located in Phoenix, AZ. Temperatures in Phoenix, AZ

tend to get pretty hot and based on licensing regulations, temperatures in school are not to go

over 82 degrees. Students are not to be in a classroom that is over 82 degrees, so they must close

down in order for the air to be fixed. The temperatures have reached 98 degrees outside and is

getting hotter as the day progresses. The air conditioning unit has gone out at the school so now,

we must decide what will be done to ensure that students and staff are in a safe environment to

learn.

Management & Operational Systems

As a principal, I must look into various areas in order to make the best decision for the

students and the staff to ensure that they remain safe. Due to the severity of the heat, I would

need to contact my supervisor/superintendent to inform them about the issues that are going on

with the air conditioner to give me the green light to close the school down for repairs. I would

also need to consider if we have a location to place the students while the repairs are being done

or if we needed to just close the school down for a few days. If a closure took place, the decision

would also need to be made if the students would have to make up those additional days if we

were to close. I would need to know how long the repairs would take in order to determine the

amount of days that the school would need to be closed.

Human, Fiscal & Technological Resources

Once the decision has been determined, I would need to figure out a way to relocate the

staff and students to a better location until they can be picked up from school. We would do our

best to provide hydration products to the students and staff while we are getting students home.

We would contact the parents by their preferred contact method to ensure that they get their
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children in a timely manner and also inform them of the decision that was made so that they can

make proper arrangements during the time of the school closure. Students are to stay with their

teachers and the front desk staff will contact the teachers to inform them that the authorized

person is there to pick up the student. We would also work with transportation to ensure that if

buses are needed to transport students to a safer location, that they would be on standby.

Safety & Welfare of Students and Staff

As a leader of my school, I am responsible for the welfare and safety of my staff and my

students. When the environment isn’t safe, the students can not learn and achieve greatness and

the teachers cannot focus enough to be able to implement lessons to fidelity and implement

various policies and procedures effectively when they are not in the proper safe environment.

Heat is a major factor and it is important to ensure that the staff are aware of the ranges of

temperatures outside and indoors to ensure the safety of themselves and the students.

Collaboration with Faculty & Community

The students, the staff, the families, administration, and the community are stakeholders

in this situation with Sunset Hills. The decisions that are made by the administration will have

some type of effect on everyone. It is important that a collaborative effort takes place to ensure

that once the decision is made that everyone can work together to ensure that everyone is safe

during the situation. “Knowing the community around the school will help in crisis situations

will help administration plan accordingly when adverse situations arise” (Barnes, 2011).

Communication with the families should take place and also constant communication with the

supervisor/superintendent as well as the maintenance team should be in order to ensure that

everything is being take care of in a timely manner for the return of the students and staff. Also,

constant communication with the families to ensure that they know when students can return is
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important. Knowing what to do and collaborating with the stakeholders help in effectively

carrying out the plan in these situations. The community areas where we could possibly take

students safely and a plan will be in place to ensure that students are released safely to their

parents/guardians. It is important that all parties are aware of what part they should play in

ensuring that the staff and students are safe.

Solution & Rationale

Arizona is a well-known state for its brutal, dry heat and temperatures can reach extreme

levels where many people have died due to the extreme temperatures. The welfare and safety of

the students and staff in the main priority in this school. Ensuring that there are effective plans

in place for situations such as these are extremely important to make sure that staff and students

remain safe while in the school environment. In this case an evacuation of the school must take

place and we must utilize resources within our community to ensure that students are evacuated

in a safe manner. “When practicing for these emergency situations, everyone in the school is

required to participate in the drills so that students and staff will know what is expected during

an actual emergency” (Kipper & Holland, 2001).

The superintendent will be notified, and the evacuation plan will go into effect to ensure

that staff and students are removed from the extreme heat. Once the students and staff are safe,

parents will be notified and given details on how to pick up their children at the new location.

Once everyone has been evacuated, families as well as other stakeholders involved in this

situation will continually be notified during this situation. Hopefully the air will be fixed in a

timely manner so that the students and staff can return to school and continue to achieve their

goals.
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References

Barnes, J. M. (2011). Five Essentials of Emergency Planning. Leadership. Retrieved

from: https://www.eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ965947

Kipper, R. J., & Holland, D. (2001). The Educator’s Guide for Planning and Conducting

School Emergency Drills. Retrieved from:

https://www.schoolsecurity.org/2020/07/how-to-do-school-safety-drills-while-

not-colliding-with-covid-19-safeguards/