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)

Suicide, currently the second major cause of death among youth, is increasing. Dealing with the aftermath of student suicide requires unusual interventions called "postventions." Important functions include preventing cluster suicides, reducing student isolation, and aiding survivors in the grieving process. Planning involves four steps:…

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…

When a crisis arrives, two elements can help save your school's reputation: the principal's precrisis credibility with the public and the press and a crisis communication plan. Crisis plans should designate a school spokesperson and procedures for gathering, communicating, and disseminating information. Key audiences include staff, students, and…

Teenage depression and suicide are a growing problem across the nation. A New Jersey high school has developed a crisis management team to deal with such problems. Twelve steps to take in developing such a team are provided, along with guidelines on the referral process, student representation, and community support. (TE)

Physical measures such as weapons checks and metal detectors are inadequate to forestall school violence. The key to managing crises is a trained, broad-based crisis-intervention team and a crisis-management plan. Team responsibilities include developing an intervention plan, coordinating with community services, educating and training staff, and…

Focuses on three urban secondary principals who were effective in turning schools in crisis into effective schools. Identifies the barriers the principals encountered and overcame in the process. Describes how these principals' authoritarian styles ceased to be effective when the schools were no longer in crisis. Points to a need for a new type of…

Outlines a 14-step process for establishing a suicide prevention program, including collecting data; gaining administrative approval; seeking legal advice; establishing an ad hoc crisis intervention committee; collecting sample forms; appraising agency resources; developing a written policy; appraising community resources; involving the media;…

School counselors can design a long-term, comprehensive drug use intervention program by combining elements from their discipline's knowledge base. They may formulate a community-based intervention team, work with the team and school officials to restructure school policy, design specific interventions, collect data on at-risk students, and…

Crisis intervention procedures can potentially conflict with students' right to privacy as defined by law and American School Counselor Association ethical standards. Principals are encouraged to work with their counseling staff and other pupil personnel workers to explore ethically appropriate means to serve students in crisis without violating…

As staff, students, and parents at a Long Island high school discovered, resolving the complicated issues surrounding the death of a beloved teacher and coach is not easy. In this case, there was unwavering support for a basketball coach dying of cancer and for students and staff afterward. Crisis intervention worked because responsible adults…

Counseling is an important program in secondary schools and should not be limited to scheduling and credit counting. A balanced program ensures services including coordination, counseling, and consultation. Included is a "Balanced Program Guide." (MD)

As violence and suicide increase in our society, educators are helping students, staff members, and families cope with the sudden loss of a peer or child. Pragmatic intervention strategies can help survivors deal with their reactions to sudden death and posttraumatic stress disorders. Counseling techniques are also outlined. (MLH)

Describes a Pennsylvania school's successful group counseling program developed to help students cope with divorce in their families. (MD)

Project CARE was developed by the West Shores School District (Lemoyne, Pennsylvania) to provide supportive services for at-risk students. It provides programs to address issues of child abuse, family crises, suicide, and student abduction. MD)