When an individual within a school becomes aware of a sudden death of a student that individual should immediately inform his or her principal.  Principal will notify Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent of the situation and begin to gather more information.

Building Admin verifies the death with family and/or the appropriate public officials, i.e. Resource Officer.  Contact the family if notification was not made by a family member. Determine designated person to be in contact with. Often families designate a point person (pastor, close relative, close friend, etc.)

• Building Admin contacts the Superintendent/Assistant Superintendent and passes along all known information.  
• Building Admin, Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent determine a plan to notify student body, staff, and families.
• Superintendent drafts a letter of communication (depending on level of permission from the family) to staff and the community.  
• Assistant Superintendent prepares the District Crisis Team.

Assistant Superintendent will notify the district crisis team (social workers, counselors, psychologists) to create a support plan and schedule.

Assistant Superintendent contacts LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs and schedules for them to come in to support students/staff, as needed.  LutheranChurchCharities.org 

Building admin will communicate to CO eSchool team to immediately make student inactive in student management system to avoid absence calls and any other automated communication in the following days. 

CO eSchool team will search eSchool to look for siblings at different schools and/or recent graduates of D100.  Principal and/or Assistant Superintendent contacts other buildings where siblings attend or formally attended (recent grads).  Support from the District Crisis Team will be issued as needed.

Building admin and school-based team should prep for support:

• Identify support center area for students in need of support and counseling in the following days.
• Consider the following: water, snacks, room set up, more private rooms (if needed), paper/coloring, etc.
• Have a room/ private area for staff.
• Consider a floating sub to assist with staff that may need a break.

Counseling/SW Team:

• Brief info for staff on how to talk with someone who is grieving.
• Examples of what to say to the class.
• (Elementary) Children's books to support the grieving process (English & Spanish)

Building admin directs a staff member to discreetly secure contents within student’s locker or desk area before/after school.

Building admin facilitates a brief staff meeting (for the school impacted) with the entire school staff.  Review the support plan for the next few days with the staff.  Seek the names of any student in need of additional emotional support. 

Principal will communicate with Assistant Superintendent regarding continued need for district crisis team members.

Within 2 weeks the Assistant Superintendent will meet with building admin, school-based team, Superintendent, and crisis management team debrief actions taken.  (What did we do well, what improvements should we make, who to thank)

• Building admin and Superintendent will respond to any requests from the family to assist with funeral support, Go Fund Me pages, etc.
• Assistant Superintendent will send out information to students, staff, and parents about how to reach out if they need support (i.e. counseling staff at school, Care Solace, etc.)

Building Admin will consider how to handle "in memory of" requests.  

Building Admin will consider how to handle support during the one year anniversary of tragedy.

Assistant Super/ Building Admin will send thank you notes for those that were able to support the school.