This session will be presented at In-Person NASN2024 on Sunday, June 30, 2:00pm – 3:15pm
In this day and age, most schools are well-versed in prevention and intervention strategies for school crisis management, but how well is your school equipped to fluidly handle the events after a crisis unfolds? How and when is information verified and shared with staff and the school community? What is a “Flight Team” and how do they help the day after, and in the days to come? What do we do with the empty desk? And finally, what is the school nurse’s role in all of it?
Cheri Lovre is a teacher and national speaker who has 35 years of experience in working with schools in the aftermath of a wide range of events like hurricanes Sandy and Katrina, multiple school shootings including Columbine High School and the Nickel Mines Amish School, and most notably, Cheri spent 2 years in NYC after 9/11 working with the 29 schools in and around Ground Zero. Cheri has authored many books and manuals, created videos and training materials, and provided in-person training for schools, districts, and school nurses.
Joining Cheri in this presentation are practicing school nurses, me, Susy Marcum and Carol Carter, along with retired school nurse and Illinois State University instructor Michelle Maurer. After Cheri presented her information at a conference at ISU-Mennonite College of Nursing last summer, the life-changing lessons she taught were taken back to our schools. We will share our stories and provide an interactive work session to empower you to bring postvention strategies to your school! In all crises, whether natural disasters or man-made, what happens afterward is a crucial part of the pathway to healing. We invite you to step into a learning experience where postvention becomes prevention, and people have an opportunity to unite around a common goal – moving forward after the empty desk.
Preview a video from Cheri Lovre about The Empty Desk.