You are ready to begin this workshop if you have (1) received confirmation of your participation, (2) visited the Orientation to Online Events website (to ensure that you and your computer are prepared for this event), and (3) complete the Pre-Event Assessment Form. Then, please take a moment to read through this page. It will help you understand how the site is organized, how much time you should expect to spend participating in the event, and where to go for technical support.

Crisis Response: Creating Safe Schools is a three-part case study designed to be completed over four days. On Days 1-3, participants are expected to read the designated materials, answer the accompanying set of questions, and share their responses with other participants in the Discussion Area. On Day 4, participants can continue their online discussion and will be asked to complete an online evaluation.

Each day will begin with a video/audio quote from expert speakers on crisis response. The quotes are taken from a three-hour video conference sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education and created in partnership with the Harvard School of Public Health, Prevention Institute, and Education Development Center entitled, The 3 Rs to Dealing with Trauma in Schools: Readiness, Response, and Recovery*. During the videoconference, Judge Eric Andell, special counsel to the secretary at the Department of Education, posed questions to panelists on various aspects of crisis response. His questions and the experts' answers provide a framework for each day of this online event's presentation and activities. For more information on the videoconference, see the Resources & Links section.

• Day 1: Preparing for a Crisis
  On Day 1, you will meet middle school officials in Virginia who have reviewed their crisis plans, organized crisis teams, made critical changes to the plans, and practiced those plans. You will be given a step-by-step guide of how to review and facilitate the implementation of a crisis plan that will work for your school.

• Day 2: Responding to a Crisis
  On Day 2, you will see how school officials in Newton, Massachusetts responded when a school bus on a music trip crashed in Canada, killing four middle school students. You will learn how a well-prepared and practiced plan helped officials respond to unforeseen problems in the days following the tragedy. You will also learn how to map community resources so that you can call in outside assistance when you need it most.

• Day 3: Preventing a Crisis
  On Day 3, you will learn how school officials in Palm Beach County, Florida began a comprehensive prevention program after a middle school student fatally shot his teacher.

• Day 4: Sharing Key Learnings with Other MSCs
  On Day 4, you will receive a summary of the week's discussion and be asked to complete an online evaluation. You are also invited to continue your online discussion.

Participants should log on at least once a day, although past participants have found that they could better monitor and contribute to the online discussion if they logged on several times throughout the day. Please allow enough time each day to read through the daily materials, complete any associated activities, and visit the Discussion Area.

On average, past participants have spent approximately one hour per day reviewing materials, completing activities, and contributing to the discussion. The training facilitator will check in two to three times a day to answer any questions and to facilitate online discussion.

Each online event website contains these sections:

• Daily Materials (Days 1, 2, 3, and 4)
  This is where participants can acquire a basic understanding of the event topic. Materials will appear in a variety of formats and can be printed for future reference. Each day, participants will also be asked to answer two or three discussion questions, which are intended to help you reflect on and apply the information contained in the materials.

• Discussion Summary
  This section will contain a summary of the previous day's online discussion. On the final day of an event, it will contain a summary of the entire week's discussion. Please read through the summary before beginning your day's work.

• Resources & Links
  The information contained in this section is designed to complement the event materials, facilitate your participation in the event, and enhance your overall learning.

• Event Support
  Participants with technical questions can go to this section and submit an online request for assistance.

• Discussion Area
  After reading each day's materials, participants will be asked to share their experiences and lessons learned in this section of the website.

Take some time to tour the site and familiarize yourself with its layout and content.

All of the materials and tools on this site can be printed and used for future reference. However, we strongly suggest that your review the materials online before you print them so that you can see how the different sections fit together. To print a specific page, go to the page of interest, place your cursor on File (at the top of the page), go to Print, and then press OK. This will print everything on the screen in front of you.

To print only the text (minus the navigation bars at the top and side of the screen), you must first open the site using the Web browser Internet Explorer. Then place your cursor on the page you want to print, right-click with your mouse, select Print, and choose OK.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to print the entire site with a single click of the mouse.

Participants with technical questions or problems can submit a request for assistance to Event Support. Your inquiries will be responded to immediately. You may also find answers to your questions in Tips for Participating in Online Events.

You will be able to visit this website at this address for one week after the event ends, though the Discussion Area will be closed during this time. After that, this event will be archived and housed in the Online Events section of the MSC website, where you will be able to access it at any time.

*Copyright 2002: U.S. Department of Education and Harvard School of Public Health, Division of Public Health Practice.