K-12 schools are an integral component of America's societal infrastructure. However, little is known about how these organizations participate in the larger system of disaster response for the various types of hazards we may face (which range from natural disasters, to terrorist attack, to violent students). In the case of the recent Hurricane Katrina, K-12 schools have been asked to absorb tens of thousands of displaced children. Without the close integration of schools, the network of social services provided to persons displaced by Hurricane Katrina will be incomplete. This study will assess the impact of displaced persons on school districts in Texas as well as analyze the school districts' experiences collaborating with the various deliverers of relief. This research will also gather perishable data on the districts' perceived vulnerability to disaster and the impact of the hurricane on emergency planning processes in school districts.
This study will contribute to scientific knowledge about educational organizations, disaster response, and the role of collaboration on hazard and emergency preparedness in public organizations. There are four likely contributions of this study. First, the study will provide an assessment of the impact of the movement of people displaced by Hurricane Katrina on school districts in Texas. Second, the research will identify the factors most closely related to policy collaboration on the part of K-12 school districts in the response to Hurricane Katrina. Third, the research will contribute to the literature on network policy making and public management. While there is broad consensus that an increasing amount of policy making is occurring in collaborative networks, there is little known about the determinants of highly effective collaboration in disaster response. Fourth, the research will contribute to our understanding of how disasters affect the planning processes initiated in educational organizations. The research will reveal how the disaster in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama has affected the vulnerability assessments of school districts in Texas. These contributions should empower emergency planners in schools (and those who work with schools) to understand how best to coordinate disaster response in a complex network of first responders and relief organizations.
