School Mobilization Assistance Response Teams (SMART)

About the SMART Program

School Mobilization Assistance Response Teams (SMART) respond to schools during a traumatic event that emotionally impacts students and staff. Team members mobilize immediately to provide support to students and staff. In addition to crisis management services, SMART provides comprehensive training to help prepare your school and staff in the event of a crisis of any magnitude.

What is a School Mobilization Assistance Response Team?

SMART is made up of counselors, social workers, psychologists, nurses, ELA staff, security staff and community volunteers.

SMART Services

Crisis Response

Once we receive the call, SMART members mobilize immediately providing support to students and staff in the event of a crisis of any magnitude.

School Crisis Trainings

SMART members will come to your school and provide your staff with an 8 hour initial training including the following topics:

• How to prepare and respond to a school crisis
• Developing an emergency plan
• The importance of a phone tree
• Key roles during a school crisis
• Communicating information to staff, students and families
• Understanding the developmental stages of students K-12 and how reactions differ
• Addressing trauma and grief in students K-12
• What to do in the days and weeks following a crisis
• Key factors for assessing risk in a school setting

Additional Workshops and Trainings

In addition to the core training, SMART conducts focused trainings including the following topics:

• Team Lead Trainings
• Quarterly Update Meetings
• Community Forums
• Customized Trainings (upon request)

Our Trainers

Wendy and Jodi are both volunteers with the Trauma Intervention Program of Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington (TIP). They coordinate many of the school trauma responses in the area. Over the years, Wendy and Jodi have also served as mentors and provided supervision and continuing education for the TIP Teen Volunteers.

Wendy and Jodi developed the School Mobilization Assistance Response Team (SMART) training in 2001. They have trained over 1500 staff members from Clark County, Washington area, the Parkrose and Reynolds School Districts in Portland, Oregon, Clackamas Community College Counseling Department, Grays Harbor County and the State of Delaware how to respond to crisis situations in the schools. Additionally, Wendy and Jodi offer Quarterly Update trainings and team building activities for all SMART Team members.

Wendy and Jodi are both trained in Critical Incident Stress Management and Critical Incident Stress Debriefing by Dr. Jeffrey Mitchell. Wendy and Jodi have both met the requirements for a Certificate of Specialized Training in Schools and Children Crisis Response Specialty through the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation. Wendy has also met the requirements for a Certificate of Specialized Training in Mass Disasters and Terrorism and Jodi has met the requirements for a Certificate of Specialized Training in Health Care.

SMART Resources

Clark County Community Resources