U-46 safety czar demands disaster-readiness

During the past year, a new director of safety at Elgin Area School District U-46 created a districtwide plan designed to tackle nearly any type of disaster that can befall a school.

John Heiderscheidt, hired in the fall of 2006, overhauled how the district manages crises, instituting a centralized rather than site-by-site response system.

A centralized plan in the state's second largest school system requires the participation of 40,000 students, 2,500 teachers, and emergency responders from 11 communities.

Heiderscheidt coordinates the groups by staging frequent disaster simulations and drills for administrators, teachers, and police and fire departments.

In 2006-07, about 70 percent of the district's staff received lockdown and crisis management training, compared with 4 percent the previous year, Heiderscheidt told the school board last week.

Heiderscheidt staged two tabletop exercises in the past year, simulating a chemical spill that forced a community-wide evacuation and a flu-pandemic outbreak.

He also has reached out to local police and fire departments, holding safety summits for chiefs from U-46 communities.

Heiderscheidt's duties include acting as the point person for local law enforcement agencies.

Ensuring the safety of U-46 students is a top priority for local police and fire departments when an emergency occurs, Heiderscheidt said.

"We get phone calls from them very early on in the stage of an incident," Heiderscheidt said.

Police and fire departments also have begun training during off-school hours in district facilities and buses.

The Elgin SWAT team, for example, responded to a staged hostage situation at Abbott Middle School.

"It's important they train there first before an incident happens," said Heiderscheidt, a former Buffalo Grove police officer.

Communication is key to managing any crisis, Heiderscheidt said.

The district has put in place a new communication system that can send rapid emergency messages to all parents and staff members.

Last year, the U-46 schools went into lockdown mode three or four times, Heiderscheidt said.

"The system was very effective," Heiderscheidt said.