School Disaster and Emergency Management

2025 California Wildfires Resources

Resources for schools, parents, and students impacted by the 2025 California wildfires.

2025 California Wildfires Resources

School Emergency Reporting System (SERS)

This tool is designed for local educational agencies (LEA) to report disaster impacts of their schools and request assistance. Utilizing this system will expedite resources to LEAs during the critical response phase of emergencies. Each LEA has a unique access code, so contact the Emergency Services Team if you need it.

• SERS LEA Login
• Recorded webinar of the School Emergency Reporting System Training (Video; 12:15)
• Training Slides (PPTX)

Emergency Services Team Educational Resource List

This list reflects the external resources for the California Department of Education (CDE). This data will support the needs of our local educational agencies (LEAs) before, during, and after disasters in California. This list includes resources such as the name of resource, type of resource and contact information. Please check the School Disaster and Emergency Management Floods webpage for the list.

• Recorded webinar of the 2023 Tulare Basin Disaster Preparedness (Video; 50:53)

Preparedness Ambassadors Program

The Preparedness Ambassadors curriculum is designed to engage 4th grade students to develop and promote disaster preparedness guidelines for their homes, schools, and local communities.

Guidance for Schools Related to the Opioid Crisis

Opioids are the fastest-growing cause of death in our state; now we had an opportunity to come together and learn from subject matter experts on how we all can play a role in the fight against the opioid crisis. This event included experts from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, California Health and Human Services, local educational agencies, the CDE, and more. Panelists shared information on ways we can work together to educate, prevent, and intervene to support and protect students.

Recorded webinar of Guidance for Schools Related to the Opioid Crisis (Video;1:05:50)

Statewide Wildfire Preparedness Webinar for Educational Entities

The largest, deadliest, and most destructive wildfires in California’s history have occurred in recent years, changing the lives of thousands. Schools were impacted by those fires, which affected whole communities. To prepare for the wildfire season, the California Department of Education partnered with other state agencies to provide the latest preparedness information. This presentation is directed at school districts, charter schools, private schools, and educational organizations that represent K-12 schools within the state.

2022 Statewide Wildfire Preparedness Webinar (Video; 1:48:43)

Disaster and Emergency Resources
Resources for local educational agencies (LEAs) related to emergency preparedness/mitigation, response and recovery associated with natural disasters and emergency situations.

Emergency Management Fundings

The following are grants used to fund or reimburse LEAs for emergency management purposes including preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation.

• California Disaster Assistance Act (CDAA)
• Communtiy Resilience Centers Program (CRC)
• Facility Hardship Funding for School Construction
• Federal Disaster Assistance
• Financial Hardship Funding for School Construction
• Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP)
• Legacy Disposal Site Abatement Grant Program
• Project School Emergency Response to Violence(SERV)
• Wildfire Prevention Grants
  

Emergency Trainings

The following are training courses provided by state, federal and organizations to better prepare for natural disasters and emergency situations.

California Specialized Training Institute (CSTI) , courses on:

• Disaster Recovery
• Disaster Mitigation
• Emergency Management Concepts and more!
  

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

• FEMA - Independent Study
  • IS-100.C: Introduction to Incident Command System (ICS)
  • IS-200.C: Basic Incident Command System for Initial Response
  • IS-700.B: Introduction to National Incident Management System (NIMS)
  • IS-800.D: Introduction to the National Response Framework
    
• National Preparedness Courses
  • * E0300: ICS 300: Intermediate ICS for Expanding Incidents
  • * E0400: ICS 400: Advanced Incident Command System
    
• ** FEMA - Emergency Management Institute School Program
• FEMA Earthquake Courses - For the below courses you must choose from the dropdown menu
  • FEMA 159 Earthquakes: A Teacher’s Package for K-6 (Tremor Troops)
  • FEMA 253 Seismic Sleuths: A Teacher's Package for Grades 7-12
  • Earthquake Safety for Schools
• All Other Hazard Courses
  • E360 Preparing for Emergencies: What Teachers Need To Know
  • E361 Multihazard Emergency Planning for Schools
  • E364 Multihazard Emergencies Planning for Schools
  • IS-360: Preparing for Mass Casualty Incidents: A guide for Schools, Higher Education, and Houses of Worship
  • IS-362.a: Multi-Hazard Emergency Planning for Schools

Volunteer Organizations

• American Red Cross
• California Service Corps
• USA Freedom Corps