Two important questions arise when creating a school crisis plan: (a) Who should be trained as part of the crisis team? and (b) What type of training will be the most effective and practical? The authors suggest that paraprofessionals are a valuable resource to consider for assisting with crisis prevention and intervention. Practical suggestions…

Crisis intervention is a role that fits exceedingly well with counseling psychologists' interests and skills. This article provides an overview of a new crisis intervention model, the Integrated Problem-Solving Model (IPSM), and demonstrates its application to a specific crisis, sexual assault. It is hoped that this article will encourage…

Family therapists need to develop therapeutic strategies which can be effective in helping members of dysfunctional and crisis-oriented families reconnect with additional sources of support and strength. The extended family and social system can serve as this source of support when it is convened, mobilized, and reactivated. (Author)

Describes Dutchess County Department of Mental Hygiene and New York State Bridge Authority's joint establishment of a suicide prevention telephone on Mid-Hudson Bridge. Telephone, which is directly connected to psychiatric emergency service, was used 30 times in two-year period. Data suggest that most would-be jumpers were ambivalent about dying…

The suicide of a competent and popular teacher required rapid but careful response by administrators at a midwestern high school. This article explains how faculty members and students were informed and how crisis specialists were brought in to help respond to strong student reactions. (PGD)

To handle unforeseen crises, Albuquerque Public Schools established a critical-incident response team with a simple, understandable chain of command. The group aims to ensure maximum safety and people' well-being, develop a districtwide crisis-response-management plan, coordinate necessary training, and collaborate with community agencies…

Reviews the professional literature on spiritual emergency, including history of the concept; etiology, features, and course of phenomenon; differential diagnosis; and professional response to clients in spiritual emergency. A verbatim transcript of a client describing a spiritual emergency illustrates aspects of the phenomenon and evaluates…

A high school principal describes the day of the terrorist attack on the federal building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. After meeting with assistant principals and the school nurse to make plans for dealing with possible repercussions, he told students what had happened, monitored TV broadcasts, evacuated the building during bomb scares, and…

This book is a timely response to the research findings of the last decade. It focuses on the need to understand just how prevalent training is in the lives of our students, how it impacts the brain, subsequent learning, and behavior. This book also details what educators do not only to prevent further harm to our students, but also to intervene…

Notes that the geographic separation and autonomy experienced by farmers creates a unique challenge for career and crisis counseling programs. Provides an overview of Rural Economics: Farmers in Transition (RE:FIT), a dislocated farmer assistance effort created by the Ohio Cooperative Extension Service to provide outplacement services such as…

Describes a method for using art therapy with adolescents in crisis. The model defines four trauma stages and associated art therapy goals. Presents an example of the model through a case study, including the art therapy approaches and method for assessing the art work and art processes. Proposes that hope is experienced through art and generative…

This article explores how organizations can prepare for crisis events by training crisis management teams (CMTs) using real-time, simulated crises. The article focuses on the impact of such training on the performance of CMTs and the manner in which such training can improve the capability of the organization to deal with adverse events. The…

Most colleges and universities are poorly prepared to efficiently address and manage crises. That is the finding of a survey, the results of which were in the January/February issue of the publication, "Change." The authors point to Hurricane Katrina and the 9/11 terrorist attacks as wake-up calls to higher education and maintain both that campus…

This instructional manual takes a developmental approach toward understanding the psychological, social and behavioral dynamics of human crisis. The manual describes the behavior patterns characterizing various psychological and physical crises, and provides background information and methods of crisis intervention with which to manage each. In…

Brief information is presented about life-threatening traumatic injuries (blunt trauma and penetrating injury) which may occur in the classroom and on how teachers can respond before medical help arrives. Suggestions include evaluating the student's responsiveness, checking breathing ability and circulation, and keeping the situation as calm as…