District Receives $248,832 Federal Grant for Emergency Response and Crisis Management Plan

Richland One is one of three districts in the state to receive funds from the U.S. Department of Education for an Emergency Response and Crisis Management Plan, under Safe and Drug-Free Schools.

The grant program will run for 18 months and involves the following community agencies: SLED (Homeland Security), City of Columbia, Richland County Sheriff's Department, Columbia Police Department, Eastover Police Department, Forest Acres Police Department, Palmetto Public Health District, Columbia Area Mental Health, Columbia Fire Department and Richland County
Emergency Services.

Grant funds will be used to: complete development of the district's emergency preparedness manual; print manuals for all district facilities; provide digitized blueprints for 30 schools; develop software for tracking students through PDAs in an emergency; a public awareness campaign; and training of first responders. These funds also will provide for the training of school personnel, students and parents; to provide radios on the same frequency as emergency responders; and to provide facilities' capacity to be self-sustaining.

The plan will be updated regularly and tested periodically.