Each year, Orange County Public Schools conducts training, dubbed Preparedness Days, to train school leaders on emergency management and safety issues. However, this annual event started much smaller, the way many safety initiatives do.

Several years ago, the Florida school district was gifted tourniquets and Stop the Bleed kits from one of its hospital partners, Orlando Health. Over three days in the summer, Orlando Health helped train district principals on how to use the new supplies. The training quickly evolved into something more, uniting principals and district emergency management staff for a multi-day conference.

In this interview, Lou Alexis, OCPS' Director of Emergency Management and a 2024 K-12 Campus Safety Director of the Year finalist, shares how Preparedness Days are run, in addition to:

• Other ways administrators and emergency management staff interact throughout the school year (5:34)
• How the district determines the content of Preparedness Days (8:59)
• How the district involves students in school safety (10:54)

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CAMPUS SAFETY SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

• Facebook: https://facebook.com/CampusSafetyMagazine
• X: https://x.com/CampusSafetyMag
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CampusSafetyMag
• LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/1836305
• YouTube: @Campussafetymagazine