School Safety: Preparing for a crisis

South Dakota schools are not immune from school shootings or other disasters. The recent shootings in Red Lake, Minn., less than 300 miles from South Dakota, remind all of us that disaster can happen anywhere. The question is: Is your school prepared to respond?

In an effort to ensure preparedness, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Dakota will present the School Safety Conference, Sept. 8-9, at the Sioux Falls Convention Center.

Featured speakers include Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, one of the world’s leading experts on the causes of violent crime. An Army Ranger and West Point psychology professor, Grossman is the author of “Stop Teaching Our Kids to Kill.” John Egelhoff also will address the group. Egelhoff, who is with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, was the senior agent in charge of the Red Lake, Minn., school shootings.

During the conference, participants will learn to develop a crisis response plan and deal with the aftermath of disaster.

Admission to the event is free. A tentative agenda is available online at www.usdoj.gov/usao/sd/. For more information, contact Jeff Clapper with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Sioux Falls at (605) 330-4400.