The first thing your staff feels each morning may be more important than your crisis plan. That may sound crazy coming from someone who creates crisis plans but it’s true. A crisis plan tells people what to do after something has gone wrong. But how your school feels when the day begins can be the deciding factor whether things go wrong in the first place.

If your school opens with warmth, calm, and trust, you’ve already reduced your risks. People who feel safe and cared for pay better attention, engage more, report concerns sooner, and stand with you in difficult situations.

Think about it…what does your school sound like when people walk in? 

Is there laughter, easy conversation, and eye contact?
Or is it quiet, chaotic, and tense? 

These aren’t minor details. They’re indicators of emotional safety and emotional safety is the foundation of physical safety. 

When adults feel appreciated, valued, and supported, they feel happier and they pass that same feeling on to students. When they feel braced for stress, afraid, or unsupported, they protect themselves and that self-protection can look like distance, defensiveness, or disengagement. 

In that environment, the subtle warning signs of violence are often missed or not reported! 

So if you’re serious about keeping your school safe, start by changing the very first thing people feel when they walk through your doors. 

Cancel all meetings until after first period (unless a true emergency).
Stand in the hall, greeting and engaging.
Turn it on and be fully present and someone others are happy to see. 

The school day doesn’t begin when the bell rings. It begins when a teacher walks through the door and is met with a smile instead of a sigh. It begins when a leader says, “Good morning, I’m glad you’re here,” and means it. 

I once watched a superintendent arrive early at one of his schools and hold the door for each teacher, thanking them for being there for the students and each other. 

Beautiful…and great safety! 

In the best schools I’ve visited, you can feel the difference the moment you walk in. An invisible string of shared purpose pulling everyone forward together. The building feels alive and happy, not anxious. 

That doesn’t happen by accident. 

It happens because someone (maybe you) decided that safety can’t just be about doors, drills, and plans. It also has to be about people, relationships, and connection. 

So before you open your doors tomorrow, take one minute to ask yourself and decide what kind of atmosphere you want your staff to feel when they walk in and lead from there because… 

The culture you build is the protection you have.
The tone you set is the response you’ll get.
The trust you earn is the safety you keep. 

And it all starts when they walk through the door.