Texas School Safety Center Resources

• The After-Action Report Template may be used or revised to meet your district's unique needs for documenting findings and improvements following a drill, exercise, or actual incident.

• An After-Action Report may be implemented after plans or operations are tested via drills, exercises, or actual incidents, resulting in ongoing improvement. There is no required After-Action Report document format. The After-Action Report Example document is only a sample of what the end report may look like.

• Retaining documentation of drills conducted at each campus or facility is a critical practice that allows schools to track progress in meeting the district EOP drill requirements, as well as for ongoing self-assessment and audit purposes.

• One of the most valuable drill feedback methods involves the use of an evaluator. This individual can be a district level staff member or local emergency responder. This form is a tool the evaluator can use to document observations and help determine if the campus achieved its intended objectives and provide feedback for improvement. Please note, this document is not mandated by law but helps with internal planning. Modify as you see fit.

• This guidance document is written to help school district administrators in considering how to think about drills and questions to pose to your leadership team, not necessarily to dictate how drills are planned or conducted. Districts must consider their own resources before planning for drills. The information in this guidance document is therefore not exhaustive and not meant to direct the tactical details of a district drill program.

• The Drill FAQs are intended to provide context to TEA's October 10, 2023 adopted rule 103.1209 Mandatory School Drills. This rule as adopted is at the end of the Drill FAQs section. It is also available on TEA's website.

• This tool helps schools document lessons learned and evaluate performance for each drill conducted throughout the school year. Please note, this document is not mandated by law but helps with internal planning. Modify as you see fit.

• It is important to have a feedback system in place, so all participants have input to evaluate campus and facility drills. This form allows students and staff the opportunity to provide valuable insight for administration to improve procedures and processes. Please note, this document is not mandated by law but helps with internal planning. Modify as you see fit.

• This tool provides schools with the ability to establish a primary purpose and identify objectives to be tested prior to conducting a drill. This form can be used to answer the following questions or similar ones: Will this drill be announced so staff is expecting the drill, or will it be a surprise? Will more than one response be tested? Will a specific area or student population be tested? Please note, this document is not mandated by law but helps with internal planning. Modify as you see fit.

• The Staff Skills Survey Form is a questionnaire that can be used by the School Safety and Security Committee or the EOP Planning Team to capture the experiences related to trainings and drills of each staff member. Please note, this document is not mandated by law but helps with internal planning. Modify as you see fit.

Federal Resources

• The Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) provides a set of guiding principles for exercise and evaluation programs, as well as a common approach to exercise program management, design and development, conduct, evaluation, and improvement planning.

• Ready is a National public service campaign designed to educate and empower the American people to prepare for, respond to and mitigate emergencies, including natural and human-caused disasters. The goal of the campaign is to promote preparedness through public involvement.

• General best practices applicable to all types of venues and events are presented with the capability to navigate to industry-specific best practices, including professional sports and entertainment events, intercollegiate athletics, interscholastic athletics, and marathon and endurance events.

• The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides world-class training and education for the nation's first responders and emergency managers and other members of the whole community through a robust enterprise of institutions and partnerships managed by the National Preparedness Directorate's National Training and Education Division (NTED) and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) National Fire Academy.