Article Excerpt:
Sheriff & Deputy Magazine
September/October 2025
NOTE: Below is an article authored by StrataSite President, Scott Lowry, excepted from the September/October edition of Sheriff & Deputy Magazine.
This step-by-step guide helps law enforcement with active threat reunification planning.
By Scott Lowry
You’re only an hour into first watch when the call comes in. An active school shooter is in your district. You rush to the scene, and as multiple mutual aid agencies, media, and community members converge upon the campus all at once, you quickly understand the potential for escalated chaos amid an already chaotic situation.
After the threat is neutralized, the focus shifts to the reunification of victims and guardians, but emotions are still running high. Panic-stricken parents are uncertain of their children’s safety and are demanding answers you might not have—or that are the most devastating to deliver.
Are you prepared to manage the turmoil and frustration of the reunification process?
During my 25-year career in law enforcement, I studied and evaluated systematic failures in emergency response during active shooter events—where gaps in preplanning, coordination, and communication between stakeholders delayed or disrupted the complex reunification process.
Executing reunification is just as complex as the initial response to the threat. A well-planned reunification system requires time to develop, plan, and practice, as well as partnerships between emergency responders and school administrators. The plan should be strategically created to calm and defuse high emotions.
Following are eight recommended steps to proactive reunification planning to bring order to an otherwise chaotic operation.
STEP 1: FORM A REUNIFICATION PLANNING TEAM
For the reunification process to be a coordinated, organized effort, there must be conversation in the community as to how it should be carried out. That’s why the reunification planning team should include a diverse group of stakeholders, from schools to emergency services, who can contribute expertise in safety, logistics, communication, and student welfare.
The primary members of the planning team should include:
- School administrators
- School resource officers
- Facility managers
- Guidance counselors
- Law enforcement command
- Fire and emergency medical services
- Mental health professionals
While including mental health professionals in the reunification planning process is not always the standard, it is increasingly recognized as a best practice to lend emotional support to those affected and, in the most tragic circumstances, provide guidance on the delivery of death notification to family members.
STEP 2: DEVELOP A DISTRICT REUNIFICATION PLAN
During the planning stage, include school personnel and agencies from neighboring communities to build an overarching district or countywide policy, which may involve selection of a common reunification site. It is recommended that the reunification site be
indoors, in a facility large enough to house the student population. Houses of worship and community centers often work well for this purpose, while other district schools do not; they must execute controlled releases of their own students. However, planning for reunification as a community ensures all stakeholders are operating around the same standard reunification protocols, preparing emergency service agencies to lend mutual aid to other districts should they need more personnel. As a rule, you’re going to need more people than you think; resources get allocated very quickly.
Law enforcement’s role in reunification is multifaceted, requiring a lot of personnel to provide full coverage at the reunification site. While a law enforcement presence offers a sense of safety and security that is critical following an emergency, it is essential for roles such as creating a traffic pattern for the site that addresses a large volume of vehicles ingressing and egressing, as well as:
- Creating a perimeter around and securing the scene of the reunification site.
- Controlling authorized entry into the reunification site.
- Assisting students whose parents haven’t arrived at the reunification site.
- Crowd control.
STEP 3: DEVELOP INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL REUNIFICATION PLANS
Once the districtwide reunification plan is complete, developing an individualized plan for each school building within the district is next. This can look very different from school to school, with a lot of variables to consider.
Each individual school reunification plan should account for:
- Predetermined reunification site.
- Determining the appropriate amount of law enforcement resources needed at the reunification site.
- School staff members trained as part of the reunification team.
- Student transportation to the reunification site.
STEP 4: EDUCATE STUDENTS IN REUNIFICATION PROCEDURES
Gathering students in their auditorium for a large group review of the process is great for general awareness of the reunification process. However, visiting individual classrooms to provide a focused 10-minute explanation can be much more effective. This tactic allows for direct engagement, encourages questions, and helps students better understand their role in the systematic process. By conducting these brief but impactful sessions annually, the process becomes familiar and ingrained, preparing students for a calm and efficient operation.
STEP 5: EDUCATE PARENTS/GUARDIANS IN REUNIFICATION PROCEDURES
The more knowledge we give parents about school safety and emergency protocols, the better we can minimize confusion when an incident occurs. The day this plan has to be activated will be one of the worst days of a parent’s life; you can help alleviate their fears by giving them the knowledge that a plan is in place to reunite them with their children and that they have a designated place to go.
Parents must be informed to bring a photo ID with them to confirm that they are the custodial parent of the child but also understand that reunification is a time-consuming effort; there will be some standing in line and waiting to be reunified. Telling parents the location of the reunification site, what to expect upon arrival, and the protocols in advance helps put their minds at ease. However, there are differing opinions on whether or not to inform parents of the location of the reunification site in advance, with concerns that the site could become compromised during a threat. If a community decides to withhold this information until a threat occurs, there must be a plan in place for communicating this information to parents immediately.
STEP 6: CONDUCT A TABLETOP EXERCISE
Tabletop exercises are an excellent tool for reunification planning, as they allow stakeholders to walk through the process without tying up the entire school and community resources. Running through a scenario from start to finish helps uncover inefficiencies or gaps in planning or works through any misunderstandings in protocol. For example, a school may have unrealistic expectations of law enforcement resources and capabilities. Should this be the case, understanding and planning for their capabilities before a crisis is crucial to an effective reunification process.
STEP 7: CONDUCT A DRILL
Drilling allows you to get your boots on the ground to see everything from a real-life perspective, which exposes potential flaws in your plan. Conducting drills is a crucial part of planning to avoid disaster at go time.
A great real-life example of this happened in my local school district. For years, we had a plan for transporting students to a designated reunification site. We were certain it would work—it even survived multiple tabletops—but when we arrived at the school and stood on-site, with volunteers filling in for parents and students, we realized immediately that our plan was not viable.
Real-time drilling revealed that the influx of emergency vehicles from across multiple agencies into the normal traffic pattern surrounding the school and proposed reunification site created a problematic situation worth readdressing. This just reinforces the need for preplanning with schools and emergency services in a collaborative manner.
Contingency planning also plays a critical role in ensuring no scenario is overlooked. During a crisis, circumstances can change in an instant. Anticipating, planning, and preparing for the possibility that a reunification site becomes compromised are essential. Designate at least one alternate reunification site in case this scenario becomes a reality, and make sure all stakeholders, including new employees, substitute teachers, and bus drivers, are trained around these contingency plans as well.
STEP 8: EVALUATE AND REVISE AS NEEDED
As part of the annual review process, emergency stakeholders should take these key actions to ensure that the reunification process is current and complete:
- Evaluate past incidents to identify areas for improvement/gaps in the plan.
- Analyze feedback from stakeholders and highlight lessons learned.
- Review resources and supplies.
- Ensure all stakeholders are updated and trained around any revisions.
- Coordinate with partners within the community.
PREPARING TODAY TO PROTECT TOMORROW
The success of reunification hinges on preparation. By bringing together the right stakeholders, developing detailed plans, educating the community, and practicing realistic scenarios, law enforcement and schools can dramatically reduce the upheaval and trauma in the aftermath of a critical incident—to respond with confidence, clarity, and compassion.
The time to prepare is now.
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About the Author
Scott Lowry is president and founder of StrataSite, a cloud-based tool that facilitates collaborative creation and sharing of emergency operation plans and incident action plans, including reunification processes. A former law enforcement officer with 25 years of experience, he regularly conducts training in all facets of school safety and serves as the lead trainer for the Department of Homeland Security-certified courses titled “Crisis Management for School-Based Incidents” and “Crisis Management for School Incidents for Key Decision-Makers.”