Board of Trustees Daraa Black Dave Brooks Walt Davenport*

With respect to reported constraints on emergency planning and preparation, over half of schools and almost three quarters of districts identified either limited time or funds. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District agrees with this finding. If school districts had more personnel and resources available, districts would be better positioned to move forward with emergency management planning. At present, limited state funds are available and a federal grant program to support emergency management planning will end in Fiscal Year 2012.

Six (of 17) school districts have managed to apply for and receive relatively large grants from governmental agencies to greatly enhance their emergency planning efforts, while others have not. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District agrees that school districts should seek grant funding. The existing federal grant program will be phasing out in 2012 and other grant programs will need to be identified. In FY 2007/2008, our school district used portions of the U.S. Department of Education Safe Schools Healthy Students Grant to provide at least 16 hours of SEMS/NIMS and hands-on emergency training to all District staff.

Some schools anticipate responding to only a few emergency situations (e.g., earthquake and fire), while others have developed plans to respond to over a dozen different threatening situations. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District agrees with this finding. Our school district has developed information for the following emergency situations: Aircraft Crash £ Bomb Threat • Bus Disaster • Disorderly Conduct Earthquake • Explosion/Risk of Explosion • Fire in Surrounding Area • Fire on School Grounds • Flooding • Loss or Failure of Utilities Motor Vehicle Crash Psychological Trauma • Suspected Contamination of Food or Water • Threat of Violence • Unlawful Demonstration/Walkout • Pandemic Influenza/Avian Flu Tsunami Watch/Warning

School districts develop plans with respect to a number of different but overlapping regulations and standards, including those required by the county, state, and the federal government. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District agrees with this finding. School districts have developed school safety plans under the Education Code. School districts are also required to comply with state and federal emergency management standards, Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) and National Incident Management System (NIMS). Efforts should be made to make these requirements consistent with each other.

Some schools reported they have not adequately anticipated the needs of students taking prescription medications, or with specialized medical needs, in the event of some emergencies, such as an extended lockdown. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District agrees that this issue should be addressed and the Newport-Mesa Unified School District is focusing on how to meet all students' needs during an emergency.

School districts are in communication with a variety of local and county departments, agencies, and systems to help them prepare for and respond to disasters or emergencies; not all districts access the same resources. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District agrees that different districts may access different resources. It is our understanding that different districts communicate in a variety of ways with first responders, local agencies, and other agencies to support matters of emergency management. Our school district has been an active participant on the Orange County Emergency Management Organization's Schools Subcommittee and the City of Costa Mesa's Disaster Preparedness Committee over the last several years. In FY 2008/2009, NMUSD worked collaboratively with both the City of Newport Beach and City of Costa Mesa Fire Departments to develop and implement a modified Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training for District school personnel. The District has also coordinated several on-site Safe School Series emergency preparedness training sessions through the Orange County Department of Education. These presentations efficiently provide site administrators with the tools necessary to maintain higher levels of readiness at their schools and share this valuable information with their site staff. NMUSD continues to work with each City's Law Enforcement and Fire Departments, as well as OC Sheriff's Department and California EMA, to provide low or no-cost emergency preparedness training and support activities.

Few schools have plans or emergency preparation information available in languages other than English. The Newport-Mesa Unified School District has not prepared emergency information in languages other than English, but it is our intention to do so in the near future (See response to