The author contends that safety and accident prevention should be given primary consideration in a school system's risk management program. He argues that accidents and losses are symptoms of defects in the management system. Two classes of loss discussed are (1) accidental -- injury/loss resulting from unintended events; and (2) purposeful -- losses rising out of criminal activity such as arson, vandalism, theft, riots, etc. Insurance is seen as a last resort in risk management, since insurance covers only direct loss and indirect losses are at least four times as great. A 3-phase safety and security program is described that emphasizes (1) prevention of the event (e.g., accident or criminal activity); (2) mitigation of consequences (minimize injury/loss resulting from accident/criminal activity); and (3) maximization of salvage (emergency medical treatment, cleanup, and return to normalcy). (Author)