In December 2007, the Head Start program was reauthorized and modified through the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007, Public Law 110-134. One of the provisions of this law added subsection 649(m) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844) (Act), entitled "Program Emergency Preparedness," to address the preparedness of…

In order to contextualise the articles in this special issue, this introductory article surveys the relevant literature from recent disasters in mostly developed countries in order to explore the wider role of schools in disaster preparedness, response and recovery. The first section argues that as schools are hubs of their communities, it is…

Using data from the School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), this report presents findings both on crime and violence in U.S. public schools and on the practices and programs schools have used to promote school safety. SSOCS collects data from public school principals about violent and nonviolent crimes in their schools. The survey also collects…

The authors respond to Goodwin's (2014) "Threat Assessment: Are We Using the Wrong Nets?" and use that article as a springboard to discuss various aspects of the threat assessment and management process. We find that Goodwin misses critical elements of the threat assessment and management process, conflates the process with two types of…

Michigan's public education system remains in a perennial rut, as it has for decades. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), Michigan's fourth grade reading scores show no significant change over the past 16 years. Even before the pandemic, too many dreams have stalled, and academic achievement remains largely…

As America ages, greater numbers of older adults will be living with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia, leading to increased incidence of wandering. Currently there are several initiatives to assist older adults who go missing. We describe and critically examine three prominent and widespread programs: Safe Return, Project Lifesaver, and…

History has much to offer education in emergencies scholars and practitioners. Most research in this field comprises qualitative case studies and, to a lesser extent, quantitative experimental studies, both of which tend to focus on either the impact of interventions or whether education processes or structures are a cause or effect of conflict. I…

"Children's Budget 2022" finds that the share of federal spending on children climbed to a historic 11.98% of the U.S. budget in FY 2022, producing remarkable declines in child poverty, hunger and the rate of children without health insurance. The report finds that the share of U.S. domestic and international spending on children rose…

This article examines a 15 year-old master level seminar dedicated to the exploration of local and complex environmental issues marked by scientific or technological uncertainties. Following a pragmatic learning approach, we focus our discussion on a triadic relationship between supervisors, students and various concerned publics. A local flood…

ACECQA has published the second in its series of occasional papers, analysing one of the most challenging quality areas -- Children's Health and Safety. Quality Area 2 addresses one of the primary objectives of the National Quality Framework -- to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of children attending education and care services. The paper…

This article presents summaries of three studies relevant to school crisis response. The first report, "A Framework for International Crisis Intervention" (Sally Dorman), is a review of how existing crisis intervention models (including the NASP PREPaRE model) have been adapted for international use. The second article, "Responding…

Australia regularly suffers floods, droughts, bushfires and cyclones, which are predicted to increase and/or intensify in the future due to climate change. While school-aged children are among the most vulnerable to natural disasters, they can be empowered through education to prepare for and respond to disasters. School disaster education is…

This report provides nationally representative data on public school safety and discipline for the 2013-14 school year. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) previously collected data on this topic in the School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), which was last conducted in the 2009-10 school year (Neiman 2011). This report presents…

International service learning courses, cultural immersion projects, and international disaster response teams have provided valuable aid, services, supplies and programs to trauma-impacted communities across the globe. Many colleges and universities support global learning and the creation of global citizens, and this ethic is reflected in many…

A number of authors consider that the early period of US security and education (1950-1970) was in some way a "golden age" where there was a prevailing societal orientation towards civil defence. This is supported, to some extent, through "Duck and Cover" type activities in schools and in community preparedness efforts. This…