|
• Team SAFE-T (School and Family Emergency Training): A
California Partnership for Safety and Preparedness is an alliance
of public and private organizations dedicated to integrating safety
and preparedness in schools throughout California.
• Team SAFE-T’s annualized school-based educational
materials will teach age-appropriate emergency information and
preparedness skills for students in grades K-12.
• The program is the first all-hazards approach of its kind
in America and is committed to building generations of prepared
children and adults.
• Team SAFE-T is the key educational component of “Be
Smart, Be Responsible, Be Prepared, Be Ready!,” the comprehensive
disaster preparedness campaign for California.
• California First Lady Maria Shriver, Honorary Chair of
the “Be Smart, Be Responsible, Be Prepared. Be Ready!”
campaign, supports and acknowledges the importance of Team Safe-T
educational materials.
• The initiative was formalized through a $1 million grant
provided by the SBC Foundation and is being launched in schools
throughout California the week of October 3-7 as part of School
Safety Month.
• Team SAFE-T was founded in response to the terrorist attacks
of September 11, 2001 by a group of concerned citizens and former
First Lady Sharon David who joined forces to increase emergency
preparedness education in our schools.
• Team SAFE-T, California State Superintendent of Public
Instruction Jack O’Connell, California State Department
of Education, American Red Cross and educational material specialists
have developed age-appropriate educational materials approved
for use in all California schools.
• Educational materials include lesson plans, discussion
topics, activity worksheets and take-home assignments. Each grade-specific
lesson plan includes five 45-minute lessons to be taught over
five days during the statewide School Safety Month.
• Each daily lesson focuses on a different type of emergency
situation, including: home and family preparedness; fire safety
and evacuation drills; drop, cover and hold drills (for earthquake
and flood hazard); multi-hazard reverse evacuation drills (i.e.,
school shooting); and community preparedness awareness.
• Families will be invited to participate in take-home activities
and attend an assembly where Emergency Responders will address
how to create a family emergency plan and improve preparedness
skills.
• The greater community also will benefit from the program
through outreach that involves California Service Corps volunteer
groups, programs, partners and affiliates.
• To teach awareness and responsibility by empowering students
and providing them the knowledge and skills needed to effectively
respond in various emergency situations.
• To train and provide fully integrated and easy to use
educational materials at no cost to teachers and administrators
in the California public schools system.
• To educate families how to use the safety and preparedness
information presented at school to help them establish a family
plan for the home.
• To help current and future generations of California’s
children grow into adults who naturally integrate preparedness
into their homes, workplaces, and communities.
• Team SAFE-T will launch the first annual weeklong program
for California public school students during October 3-7, a kick
start to October 2005’s School Safety Month.
• The pilot program will be offered to more than 30,000
students in five select schools [3 elementary, 1 middle, and 1
high school] in each of the six California school districts identified
as pilot sites from across the state, and activities in these
schools will be evaluated.
• An extensive evaluation of the Team SAFE-T pilot program
will be conducted by the UCLA Center for Public Health and Disasters
under the oversight of Dr. Kimberley Shoaf. Results of this evaluation
will guide program improvements for future success.
• In the first year of the program, all 9,000 California
public schools will have access to the Web-based educational materials
developed by Team SAFE-T at no cost. These materials will be accessible
and downloadable off the website www.teamsafe-t.org for use in
schools and classrooms.
• California has mandated that schools statewide teach children
skills necessary to help themselves and those around them be safe
when earthquakes and fires strike. Northern California is also
mandated to ensure that schools equip students with skills for
winter weather preparedness. The Team SAFE-T educational materials
meet these mandates and help schools comply.
• The statewide program is designed to serve a diverse student
body, and program materials will be available in English and Spanish.
American Red Cross
California Broadcasters Association
California Department of Education
California Highway Patrol
California Professional Firefighters
California Service Corps
California State Alliance
Channel One Network
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Governor’s Office of Emergency Services/California Office
of Homeland Security
James Lee Witt Associates, LLC
SBC
Univision Communications Inc./La Opinion
University of California, Los Angeles - Center for Public Health
& Disasters
For more information, please contact Margaret Bush-Ware, Program
Director, by phone at 310-777-0092 or via e-mail at mbushware@teamsafe-t.org.
|