Our nation’s K-12 schools and school districts and postsecondary institutions are entrusted to provide a safe and healthy learning environment for students, faculty, and staff members. Faced with emergencies ranging from active shooter situations to fires, tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and pandemic influenza, this is no easy task. Many of these emergencies occur with little to no warning. It is critical for all schools and school districts—public and private, large and small, rural and urban—and institutions of higher education (IHEs)—community colleges, universities, and technical schools—to plan ahead to ensure the safety and general welfare of all members of their school or campus community.

What is the Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance (TA) Center?

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Safe and Supportive Schools has administered the REMS TA Center to serve two critical functions aimed at helping education agencies, with their community partners, manage safety, security, and emergency management programs. We build the preparedness capacity (including prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery efforts) of schools, school districts, IHEs, and their community partners at the local, state, and Federal levels. We also serve as the primary source of information dissemination for schools, school districts, and IHEs for emergencies via the REMS TA Center Website.

The REMS TA Center does not endorse products, services, or service providers. Additionally, the REMS TA Center does not provide certificates other than certificates of attendance.

Whom do we serve?

• Schools and school districts (e.g., K-12, public, nonpublic, private);
• IHEs (e.g., community colleges, universities, technical schools);
• Local education agencies (LEAs);
• Regional education agencies (REAs);
• State education agencies (SEAs);
• Community partners (e.g., law enforcement, fire department, public safety, emergency medical services, health and mental/behavioral health agencies);
• Current or former grantees (e.g., Grants to States for School Emergency Management, Emergency Response and Crisis Management/REMS, Emergency Management for Higher Education); and
• Other stakeholders in K-12 or IHE emergency management (e.g., families, nonprofit organizations).

What free services and products do we offer?

Technical Assistance (TA)

REMS TA Center staff members are available by email (info@remstacenter.org) and via toll-free telephone (855-781-REMS [7367]) to respond to requests for assistance on a variety of topics pertaining to emergency operations planning for education agencies. Submit your TA request using our interactive TA Request Form.

Community of Practice

Our virtual space is open to schools, school districts, IHEs, and their community partners to collaborate on special projects, share news and resources, discuss trends and ideas, and learn from the experiences of others in the field. Join the Community of Practice.

At a Glance Guidance

Federal agencies have worked together to create joint products on critical topics in emergency management for K-12 schools and school districts and IHEs. These guidance documents align and build upon years of emergency planning work by the Federal government and may be used to develop, review, and revise high-quality emergency operations plans (EOPs) and understand adult sexual misconduct in the school setting. View the At a Glance version of the following guidance documents:

• K-12 School Emergency Management Planning
• K-12 District Emergency Management Planning
• Higher Ed Emergency Management Planning
• K-12 Adult Sexual Misconduct Prevention

Topic-Specific Resources

We provide supplemental support by offering a variety of resources from the REMS TA Center, the U.S. Department of Education, and other Federal agency partners on key topics in K-12 and higher ed emergency management. View our topic-specific resources.

Publications and Guidance Documents

The REMS TA Center and the Office of Safe and Supportive Schools produce a variety of publications and guidance documents in collaboration with Federal partners and practitioners in the fields of school and higher ed preparedness. Browse by topic to find samples, fact sheets, and resource lists. View our publications and guidance documents.

State Emergency Management Resources

We present an infographic, which contains information based on independent research, to guide users as they search for state-level information related to school and higher ed safety and emergency management. View our state emergency management resources.

EOP Interactive Tools

We offer five EOP Interactive Tools to support individuals and planning teams in applying concepts fundamental to emergency management. Education agencies can use these tools to create new plans, as well as to revise or update existing plans, and to align their emergency planning practices with those at the national, state, and local levels. Learn more about our EOP Interactive Tools.

Tool Box

We maintain an interactive and virtual library of tools developed by emergency managers in the field. This library or "tool box" contains relevant resources pertinent to the needs of SEAs, REAs, LEAs, IHEs, and their community partners as they engage in the process of emergency preparedness planning. Visit the Tool Box or submit your tool via our Tool Box Submission Form.

On-Site Trainings by Request (TBRs)

We offer a variety of train-the-educator and train-the-trainer trainings on topics ranging from EOP development to behavioral threat assessments in schools. For each training, we provide FREE workbooks and supplemental materials, expert trainer(s), and REMS TA Center staff support. Apply for a TBR.

Webinars

We host Webinars regularly and offer a diverse set of archived Webinars with presentations from experts in the field. Topics include emergency evacuation planning for the whole school community, lead exposure and lead testing and reduction programs, food safety in emergencies, and more. View an archived Webinar.

Specialized Training Packages

Our downloadable specialized training packages feature self-paced training materials and tabletop exercises to support emergency management planning across a range of special topics. Topics include planning for family reunification, integrating the needs of students and staff with disabilities and other access and functional needs, developing a recovery annex, and more. Download a specialized training package.

Online Courses

We offer self-paced online courses to practitioners in the field of school and higher ed preparedness. Topics include EOP development, bereavement and loss, infectious disease planning, continuity of operations, and more. Sign up to take an online course.

Creative Materials

We created Web badges and email signature banners for use by our partners in school and higher ed safety, security, and emergency management at the Federal, state, and local levels. Please download the badges and banners—which are available in different sizes—and link them back to the REMS TA Center Website. Download our creative materials.

Thank you for visiting our Website! We always welcome your input on the resources available on our Website and your suggestions for additional resources you would find helpful. Drop us a note to share your feedback or to let us know about a high-quality plan or plan component, a novel or innovative practice, or a story of lessons learned from an actual emergency you would like to contribute to the field.