1 min read
Chris Joffe: June 30, 2025
I’m honored to announce that Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell has joined the Joffe Advisory Board, effective July 1, 2025.
Read More
3 min read
.jpeg?width=30&name=Headshot%20(1).jpeg){kind=small}
Colleen Scheetz: June 24, 2025
A guide to building calm, confident, and safe campuses In a school emergency, what happens in the first few moments can shape everything that...
2 min read
Cat Cecere: May 28, 2025
Author: Cat - mom, school ops leader, and national crisis responder For the last several years, I’ve had the honor of serving as Managing Director of...
2 min read
-2.png?width=30&name=Joffe%20Social%20Media%20(9)-2.png){kind=small}
Cynthia Romero: April 1, 2025
What You'll Learn... In this blog, you’ll learn from a real-world experience during the Los Angeles wildfires, where the Incident Command System...
3 min read
Emma Johnson: March 3, 2025
As immigration enforcement continues to be a prominent concern in the United States, many school professionals are asking: “Should we do ICE drills?”...
3 min read
Elizabeth Rupert: January 8, 2025
Pop Quiz: When do most schools schedule fire drills? Tuesdays at 10 a.m. Why? It’s one of the most predictable times of the day—after breakfast,...
3 min read
.png?width=30&name=Joffe%20Social%20Media%20(73).png){kind=small}
Dr. Olivia Ellison: December 4, 2024
Hi, my name is Olivia. I have been a Joffe Safety Consultant for the last two and a half years while finishing my doctorate in public health, which...
2 min read
Elizabeth Rupert: October 2, 2024
Why Participate in the Great ShakeOut? The Great ShakeOut is the world’s largest earthquake drill, and it’s designed to be more than a simple...
2 min read
Dr. Olivia Ellison: September 4, 2024
New York state's recent ban on realistic lockdown drills is a significant victory - a step toward much-needed reform in how we conduct safety drills....
3 min read
Cat Cecere: July 31, 2024
Each new year brings fresh beginnings, and with it, the responsibility to ensure our schools remain safe and secure havens for learning. The unique...
1 min read
Colleen Scheetz: July 3, 2024
Creating a safe and nurturing learning environment has always been a priority for schools. With a holistic view of school safety, Joffe Emergency...
2 min read
Emma Johnson: July 3, 2024
As meteorologists predict an exceptionally active hurricane season in 2024, schools must prioritize preparedness to ensure the safety and continuity...
3 min read
.png?width=30&name=Joffe%20Social%20Media%20(66).png){kind=small}
Jayme Mallett: June 5, 2024
As summer approaches, many schools prepare to welcome students for summer school, camps, and other enrichment programs. While these programs offer...
2 min read
Cat Cecere: May 1, 2024
In mid-April, an 18-year-old Maryland student was arrested and charged with threatening mass violence at a school after authorities were informed of...
2 min read
Jayme Mallett: May 1, 2024
In a recent discovery by Campus Safety Magazine, a cybersecurity researcher unearthed a disconcerting reality: school shooting emergency plans were...
2 min read
Jayme Mallett: April 25, 2024
At Joffe, we recognize the importance of proactive measures to prevent workplace violence in schools. That's why we're excited to introduce our...
2 min read
Jayme Mallett: April 2, 2024
As school leaders, organizing successful after-school events goes beyond just ensuring smooth logistics and exciting games. Safety and security are...
3 min read
Cat Cecere: March 6, 2024
Picture this: a parent receives a text notification that their child's school is on lockdown. With no further communication, their mind begins to...
7 min read
Dr. Olivia Ellison: January 31, 2024
On May 24, 2022, a horrific event unfolded at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, shattering the lives of families and communities forever. An...
3 min read
Chris Joffe: January 19, 2024
During Alaska Airlines Flight 1282's departure from Portland, Oregon on January 5th, a plane door's plug unexpectedly disconnected as the aircraft...
3 min read
Elizabeth Rupert: January 3, 2024
Unlocking Diversity in Emergency Response Plans In my work as a school safety consultant, I typically review five or more school emergency response...
2 min read
Emma Johnson: December 6, 2023
Protecting Your Students and Devices during Winter Break Over the past decade, but especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, technology in...
3 min read
Pat Hurley: October 31, 2023
Metal Detectors in Schools – Rumors, Claims and Myths
2 min read
Emma Johnson: October 5, 2023
Every school’s first priority is keeping staff and students safe. But in a world where safety threats are becoming more frequent, schools must...
1 min read
Elizabeth Rupert: October 5, 2023
When planning Halloween celebrations in schools, it's vital to prioritize health and safety to ensure a fun and risk-free event for all students and...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: October 3, 2023
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), there were more than 1600 earthquakes of a 5.0 or higher magnitude in 2019, resulting in...
1 min read
The Joffe Family: September 12, 2023
As we eagerly approach the upcoming school year, Joffe Academy is proud to introduce our new Safety Committees and Advanced Planning Toolkit. This...
3 min read
Cat Cecere: September 8, 2023
Recently, on a cloudless 85-degree day, my husband and I were with a group of friends and their kids sitting around a friend’s pool in our home city...
1 min read
Elizabeth Rupert: August 23, 2023
Analysis of the tragic wildfires that impacted Maui last week is already part of the national conversation. In the aftermath of a disaster, it is not...
1 min read
The Joffe Family: August 3, 2023
Did you know that many of the general best practices for a strong start to the school year support BOTH a strong, joyful school culture AND safety...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: May 4, 2023
Over the years, we’ve watched many schools navigate leadership transitions. From Heads of School and Principals to APs and Deans, changing leaders...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: May 4, 2023
This time of year is never short on to do’s for school leaders and administrators! Whether you’re trying to triage your current list of projects, or...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: April 6, 2023
The shooting at The Covenant School in Tennessee on Monday, March 27, 2023, was our nation’s deadliest K-12 school shooting in nearly a year. As...
3 min read
The Joffe Family: March 1, 2023
It’s springtime, which means the new school year is just around the corner. As you’re jumping into planning for the 2023-24 year, it’s a great time...
The Joffe Family: January 10, 2023
2022 was an exciting year of growth for the Joffe team, enabling us to help keep communities safe across the nation. Take a look at just a few of...
3 min read
The Joffe Family: January 5, 2023
2022 is officially a wrap! As we look ahead to the 2023 calendar year, lessons and trends from the past 12 months can shed light on what may be in...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: January 5, 2023
Making sure students are both physically and emotionally safe on the best of days can be a full time job for teachers and school leaders. It can...
1 min read
The Joffe Family: December 1, 2022
The term “tripledemic” recently became part of our vocabulary. Why? Because the winter of 2023 is anticipated to bring a triple threat to public...
3 min read
The Joffe Family: December 1, 2022
Dr. Jasmin Whitfield joined the Joffe team in July as our Director of School Health Services. Her 20 years of experience in health has prepared her...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: November 3, 2022
Our team was recently on the ground in St. Louis, MO when a former student opened fire at a local high school — Central Visual and Performing Arts...
4 min read
The Joffe Family: September 20, 2022
If your school has hired a contract company to provide campus security services, you likely asked yourself an important question when making your...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: September 1, 2022
In the school safety world, we often talk about “risk assessments” and “threat assessments” as important tools to keep communities safe. To be sure,...
4 min read
The Joffe Family: August 14, 2022
Over the past few weeks, the monkeypox virus has been spreading quickly, prompting a recent wave of public health emergency declarations at the...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: August 3, 2022
It’s August, which means back-to-school season has officially begun. Whether you’ve already welcomed students back onto campus, or you’re knee-deep...
5 min read
The Joffe Family: August 2, 2022
The Joffe Team is proud and delighted to introduce our Board of Advisors. Composed of distinguished professionals spanning the education, health, law...
4 min read
Chris Joffe: July 19, 2022
School nursing isn’t what it used to be. Routine activities like lice screenings and keeping health records updated are still very necessary, yet the...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: April 5, 2022
In recent years, cyberattacks have been getting both more frequent and more sophisticated. From Aug. 14 to Sept. 12, 2021, educational organizations...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: March 3, 2022
Last Friday, CDC issued new mask guidance that revises the criteria by which communities - including schools - should consider wearing masks. The...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: February 28, 2022
The recent news of Russia’s invasion in Ukraine is shaking many of our communities. Students and staff alike are likely grappling with a mix of...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: February 3, 2022
The world has changed quite a bit since February 14, 2018, when Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida endured a senseless and...
3 min read
Chris Joffe: February 3, 2022
Next month will mark the two-year anniversary of the WHO’s declaration of Covid-19 as a global pandemic. Two years in, we’re beginning to see...
6 min read
Chris Joffe: January 6, 2022
Wondering what the new year might bring? Here’s our best (educated) guess about what schools will face in 2022. It’s paired with our best advice for...
3 min read
Chris Joffe: December 1, 2021
The calendar year is coming to a close, but we are far from the end of the road when it comes to student behavior challenges. While the winter break...
1 min read
Chris Joffe: November 4, 2021
Since it began trending in mid-September 2021, the “TikTok Schools Challenge” has put educators and school staff on alert. The challenges provide...
1 min read
Chris Joffe: November 2, 2021
A few months into the year, we’re battling an uptick in fights and weapons that’s causing a wave of fear and anxiety across campuses. At the same...
1 min read
The Joffe Family: February 25, 2021
Emergency notification systems have been in widespread use since the early 1950s when CONELRAD was developed and put into place. This nationwide...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: February 23, 2021
What are Allergic Reactions? As defined by the Mayo Clinic, an allergy is “when your immune system reacts to a foreign substance...or a food that...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: February 2, 2021
We sat down with our director of Get CPR Done, Felicia Gonsalez, to talk about the impact that the pandemic has had on CPR training.
2 min read
The Joffe Family: January 28, 2021
CPR is one of the most basic and essential first aid and emergency response skills to know. According to Felicia Gonsalez, our director for Get CPR...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: January 25, 2021
3 min read
The Joffe Family: January 21, 2021
The next topic of our At-A-Glance series is the next most direct and simple emergency to handle: a fire on campus.
6 min read
The Joffe Family: January 19, 2021
Lockdowns are scenarios in which campus is called to stop all movement on and off of campus because of a direct or nearby threat to staff and/or...
3 min read
The Joffe Family: December 8, 2020
One of the challenges that parents have shared about the continued pandemic is the issue of how to maintain proper relationships and socialization...
5 min read
The Joffe Family: December 3, 2020
Through the experience of supporting schools throughout the U.S. and now the world, Joffe has learned a thing or two about emergency management and...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: December 1, 2020
We sat down this week with our Director of Emergency Management, Hope Kaye. Hope has been involved in emergency services for five years, having...
5 min read
Chris Joffe: November 25, 2020
My last marathon was March 8, right before Covid-19 shifted our day to day lives in ways many never anticipated. Because it was my last “normal” day,...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: November 17, 2020
We sat down with Emily, the Health Coordinator for an Independent School in the Bay Area in California, to talk about how the pandemic has affected...
3 min read
Cat Webling: November 9, 2020
2 min read
Chris Joffe: November 2, 2020
During times of particular challenge within our greater community, we've experienced civil unrest. During those times, it can be helpful to have...
4 min read
Chris Joffe: November 2, 2020
Kitchen Safety During the Holidays
2 min read
Chris Joffe: October 30, 2020
The 2020 American presidential election is set to take place on November 3, but early voting has already begun in most states. Given the current...
4 min read
Chris Joffe: October 28, 2020
A note from the co-authors: This blog arises from partnership between Joffe Emergency Services and Experiential Consulting, LLC. It’s a pleasure to...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: October 23, 2020
Having reached a point in the year where many large holidays are quickly looming on the horizon, questions have begun to arise about the best...
4 min read
Chris Joffe: October 21, 2020
In any given election year, October is a busy one. Election and candidate information dominate the news cycle. We are bombarded by positive and...
1 min read
Chris Joffe: October 13, 2020
With 330 million people living and working in the United States, a major earthquake could cause unprecedented devastation. What we do now, before a...
1 min read
Chris Joffe: October 9, 2020
What Is This About? We're often asked about where we get the latest Covid-19 Information. Below, we're sharing with y'all a quick summary of some of...
3 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: February 27, 2020
Every decision a school makes centers on this equation - is this what’s best for the community? Of course, it’s a complex world and these decisions...
3 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: January 30, 2020
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: January 7, 2020
If you’ve engaged with any Joffe resources, articles, or blog posts in the last year, there’s a good chance you read something about wildfires. We...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: December 17, 2019
The American School Health Association (ASHA) is an international organization that has spent almost a century assisting schools in their mission to...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: September 24, 2019
Automatic external defibrillators, or AEDs, are one of the most essential tools that school communities have to keep their people safe. As a brief...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: September 11, 2019
Privacy has always been a challenge and concern for schools, even before every single individual on campus began carrying powerful technology in...
4 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: September 4, 2019
From our perspective, the most important goal or element in effective school safety protocols is knowing exactly who is on campus at any given time....
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: July 16, 2019
3 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: June 20, 2019
At least for me, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as checking off items on my to-do list. The size or relative importance of the task isn’t the...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: June 11, 2019
It is absolutely normal to be concerned about things that are statistically unlikely to happen. Anyone watching me white-knuckle the armrest during...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: May 29, 2019
We’ve written before about how recovering from emergencies can be a long, complicated process. The hard work of rebuilding a campus and/or a...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: May 16, 2019
Leading your school community through its recovery from an emergency or crisis is a long, long process. One of the challenges is navigating through...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: April 29, 2019
Emergency drills have become a controversial or at least widely discussed topic in school safety for a myriad of reasons. If done purposelessly or...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: April 3, 2019
I feel lucky to have grown up where I grew up. My high school, Charles D. Owen High (Go Warhorses!) is nestled in the Swannanoa Valley, surrounded by...
1 min read
Chris Joffe: March 22, 2019
As an expert in the field of school emergency preparedness, I must share the shame, disappointment, and frustration I felt after hearing how teachers...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: February 6, 2019
Hey. We're proud of you. Take a moment to appreciate the hard work you've done on the path to emergency preparation and school safety. (If you know...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: January 15, 2019
Lockdown drills are a necessary part of any good school safety plan. Knowing what to do in an emergency (and having practiced it enough to be able to...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: January 10, 2019
In our field of school safety and emergency preparedness, we often deal with people who are feeling high levels of stress, anxiety, and fear. While...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: December 12, 2018
If this is the only school safety blog you belong to, (and hey, more power to you if it isn't!) you may have missed the state of Michigan's School...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: November 30, 2018
We aren't breaking any news when we note that the recovery process following a disaster is a long and complex process. Schools and communities will...
5 min read
Cecile Garcia, Operations Manager: November 27, 2018
When your home, school, office, or other space is impacted by a fire, the desire to rebuild is strong. The first step of restoration, cleaning up,...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: November 16, 2018
Over the past few years, a positive consensus seems to have developed. The core of that consensus is that we must find ways to protect our schools...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: October 12, 2018
Just as you expect from your community safety blog post, today starts with a poem from the American author Mary Oliver (Hey, it's Friday, right?). We...
1 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: September 24, 2018
One of the major ways Joffe Emergency Services supports our school partners throughout the country is by providing CPR and First Aid training and...
1 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: September 20, 2018
Perhaps the title of this blog post sacrificed some clarity for the sake of alliteration, so here's what it's about. One of the more common injuries...
1 min read
The Joffe Family: September 7, 2018
We often talk about safety preparation at Joffe, and for good reason. Preparation allows for people to make confident, correct decisions in a...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: September 5, 2018
Your school's supply shed is filled with all of the emergency supplies needed to keep campus functioning for up to 72 hours following a disaster or...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: August 30, 2018
One of the most important elements to the Joffe approach to school safety is our belief that necessary safety improvements are more likely to stick...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: August 28, 2018
As the school year picks back up at its typical leisurely pace (a joke!), we’re welcoming smiling faces back to campus, both familiar and brand-new....
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: August 13, 2018
I stumbled upon a great article recently that got me thinking about school safety. Now, that may have been because I’m always thinking about school...
1 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: August 3, 2018
Our summer safety series rolls on, this time touching on the bane of many a parent’s foot on a dark night - toys. The organization World Against Toys...
3 min read
The Joffe Family: July 11, 2018
Our summer safety tips roll on with a (verbal) trip to one of the best ways to beat the heat-the water! We know that the summer is one of the more...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: July 7, 2018
Driving an automobile, like many of the tasks we do daily and unthinkingly while overlooking the complexity, is performed through numerous smaller...
2 min read
Bobby Decker, Operations Specialist: June 27, 2018
A recent article in the National Business Officers Association’s (NBOA) NetAssets magazine (an excellent resource for independent schools around the...
3 min read
The Joffe Family: May 7, 2018
To be completely honest with you, the reader, I was anxious when I was tasked with writing this post. The goal was to share my thoughts on a story...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: March 6, 2018
As students across the nation prepare to walk out of schools on March 14, we stand ready to receive their message. Regardless of your school’s...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: February 28, 2018
There are many devices on the market that can increase security in a lockdown situation. Finding the right solution for your campus will take...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: January 23, 2018
If you live in Hawaii, last weekend you experienced quite a scare… Maybe if you live anywhere. As many of you know there was a false alarm sent out...
2 min read
Chris Joffe: December 19, 2017
Woah, that’s a new term. Let’s start at the beginning: The Incident Command System is a program developed to manage emergencies and most importantly,...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: December 4, 2017
The last month of the year has so many meanings for different communities. In business, it is often a time to set goals and financials for the coming...
3 min read
That’s a question we get a lot about our emergency line. First, some context: Being a responsible partner in safety, means having a process in place...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: September 29, 2017
As September comes to an end, it wraps up with National Preparedness Month. This is a national campaign dealing with an actual disaster. Visit their...
1 min read
Based on national statistics, approximately 30,000 people will die in vehicular accidents this year, with many of those accidents involving teenage...
1 min read
Chris Joffe: July 1, 2017
Mylan, the maker of EpiPens, made headlines in August 2016 for the increased pricing of the most popular medication delivery device sold to treat...
1 min read
The Joffe Family: June 1, 2017
Someone forwarded me this email, titled “Lockdown Averted”. You may be thinking that’s crazy. Maybe you’re even thinking, “why am I still reading...
2 min read
The Joffe Family: May 16, 2017
Last month I was visiting my parents in Texas. My mother asked me if I could pick up my nephew from school and of course I was happy to oblige. I...
