School Crisis Communication Plan - Essay Example

Crisis Communication Plan: Table of Contents Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………………2 Crisis Communication Plan Purpose…………………………………………………..3Crisis Communication Plan Objectives………………………………………………..4 Crisis Communication Procedures……………………………………………………..5 Crisis Communication Response……..…………………………………………………6 Ongoing Procedures during Crisis…………………………………………………….10 Crisis Aftermath ………………………………………………………………………………11 Appendix A………………………………..…………………………………………………….14 Appendix B…….. ………………………………………………………………………………15 Appendix C………………………………..………………………………………….………….16 Appendix D……… ………………………………………………………………………………17 Crisis Communication Plan: Purpose The Crisis Communication Plan Purpose is to provide necessary policies and procedures which are to be used in order to coordinate communications within the school, and between the school, the media and the general public in the event of the recent controversial issue: the school has been found to have a drug abuse problem; the media are reporting that teachers are engaged in selling/giving drugs to students. The Crisis Communication Plan addresses the media relations and issues that relate to communications. It also contains procedures for quick identification of those situations that may be harmful to the reputation of the school. It outlines major methods for reacting to these situations in a quick and effective manner. It is the principal goal of this Crisis Communication Plan to set up guidelines for handling the recent controversial situation and to ensure that school staff are well familiar with these procedures as well as their roles in this situation. The Crisis Communication Plan is designated to be utilized along with the common decision-making hierarchy of the school and in no way supplants this decision-making process. While addressing the media and the general public, the school will deliver factual data and messages that will be most beneficial to the school and to the school district. We aim at helping the mass media through provision of information which will enable them to air unbiased and true information about the school, which will not discredit the its position as a reliable educational establishment and educational leader. In all procedures of communication, the school will set up a positive opportunity for the general public that will position the educational sector as a whole (Crisis Communication Plan: Nonprofit Toolkit). Messages about the drug abuse problem and alleged involvement of our school teachers in drugs delivery will be solution oriented, responsive and directed at effective action. They will reinforce the school’s leadership position. The following School Communications Plan will serve as a guide to crisis communication for our school. Its overall purpose is to facilitate management of communications in the context of crisis. It includes necessary organizational considerations. The next section will inform about the objectives of the plan. Crisis Communication Plan: Objectives The Objectives of the Crisis Communication Plan are 1. To provide factual assessment of the given situation and decide whether an appropriate communications response is warranted. 2. To form a Crisis Communication Team who will be responsible for making relevant recommendations on suitable responses. 3. To take immediate measures in order to: o Locate those constituencies that ought to be informed about the drug abuse and teachers’ alleged involvement o Effectively and accurately communicate facts that disclose the crisis. o Minimize rumors. o Efficiently restore the order at school and parents’ confidence o Successfully safeguard the school’s reputation. On a more detailed level, the objectives of the Crisis Communication Plan are to 1. Successfully prepare the school staff to manage the crisis communications in an effective and nimble manner 2. Provide adequate help to the school staff in their attempts to deliver a unified and professional response to reinforce the school’s leadership and maintain loyalty 3. Provide the strategic enhancement to the school’s brand and retain its leading role, as well as ensure adequate public understanding of the school’s value in terms of its educational services 4. Successfully manage the data distribution, in particular dissemination of crucial and sensitive information to the sources of the mass media, which will make the current data available for the members of the public, staff members, and media representatives 5. Consistently inform the school staff of the administration’s (Principal’s) position in attempts to shape an adequate response (Crisis Communication Plan: Non-Profit Toolkit, n.d.) Assessment – The individual that has encountered the crisis ought to collect relevant information from pertinent sources. After collecting the data, the individual ought to refer the gathered information to Deputy Principal or Associate Principal and consult the person responsible for grades mentioned in the drug abuse information. Principal should be contacted immediately if the lower rank officials are unavailable. The Principal will determine whether the drug abuse crisis warrants assembling the Crisis Communications Team. Assembling the Crisis Communications Team – Principal’s composition of the Crisis Communication Team includes the following member of the school staff: • Principal: Vanessa White • Deputy Principal: Laura Folk • Associate Principal: Linda Evans • Director of Communications • Director of Human Relations Read More