Mission Statement

Assist schools in preparing for, mitigating, responding to and recovering from natural and man-made threats and incidents.

About the Iowa School Safety Alliance

The Iowa School Safety Alliance was formed in December 2012. Participating organizations include Iowa Homeland Security & Emergency Management, Iowa Department of Education, Iowa State Education Association, Iowa Association of School Boards, School Administrators of Iowa, American Institute of Architects – Iowa Chapter, Iowa Pupil Transportation Association, Iowa Fire Marshals Association, Iowa Public Health, School Safety Managers and at-large members.


Current Events



3rd Annual Iowa School Safety Alliance Video Contest

The Iowa School Safety Alliance has opened it's 3rd annual video contest for high schools in Iowa.  Electronic Engineering has once again partnered with The Iowa School Safety Alliance to provide prize money to the winning schools who can effectively portray the winning theme in their video. This year's prizes are: $1000 to the first place video, $600 to the second place video, and $400 to the third place video. This year's theme is "What's your plan?" and was chosen with Iowa Code 280.30 in mind, which requires schools to write a "high-quality emergency operations plan" by June 30, 2019.


The winning schools will be recognized by Governor Kim Reynolds and Electronic Engineering in March, 2019 for the Iowa Safe Schools Proclamation Signing and Video Contest Awards. We are always amazed at the quality videos that are entered, and look forward to seeing your entry. Good luck! The deadline for submissions is midnight, Thursday, February 28, 2019. For more details please go to the Video Contest tab.


Congratulations board member Deb Schwiesow!Debra Schwiesow, a practicing school psychologist with Green Hills Area Education Agency, has recently been accepted as a trainer with REMS (Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools) as a subject matter expert in the area of crisis management. As a part of her work with REMS she will be co-presenting on Threat Assessment and Resilience Strategies for Educators in various locations across the United States. We are very proud of her!

More than meets the eye: High-quality emergency plans
The Iowa Department of Education's School Leader Update talks about what goes into a High-quality emergency plan. For information on how to improve your own district plan, please click on the link below.
https://educateiowa.gov/article/2019/01/23/more-meets-eye-high-quality-emergency-plans?mc_cid=608b896abc&mc_eid=336827aee9


See Something, Say Something Campaign
The Iowa Department of Homeland Security has awarded a grant to the Iowa School Safety Alliance, Iowa Department of Education, and local AEAs. With this grant, we were able to provide two 13x19 inch posters to every school in Iowa and one 3ft x 8ft vinyl banner with grommets to every high school. Just like in Parkland, FL, our students have a voice, and they must be encouraged to use it. Our hope is our students in Iowa will be encouraged to say something when they see something that seems suspicious. To order additional posters or banners you may contact your local AEA.

Iowa Fire Marshals Association Press Release
The Iowa Fire Marshals Association has put out a press release in response to the February 14th shooting in Parkland, FL. The press release addresses many concerns the public has and how they can make their schools safer.  To read the press release, please look under Bulletins.

Senate File 2364 Signed into Law!!
The Iowa School Safety Alliance was present when Governor Kim Reynolds signed the groundbreaking bill into law. This new bill requires schools to work with their county emergency manager, fire department, and law enforcement to develop a high quality emergency operations plan and conduct an annual drill based on the plan. Fortunately, the ISSA was able to provide valuable input on bill language to improve the planning process for schools, but the timeline remains short. It must be completed by June 30, 2019. Over the course of the next year, the ISSA will be working with the Iowa Department of Education, Iowa Homeland Security, and AEAs to provide free resources for schools. Some of the free resources will include workshops and webinars. Please stay tuned for future announcements. To read the bill please click the link below

www.legis.iowa.gov/legislation/BillBook?ga=87&ba=sf2364