School Safety Drills and Student Well-Being: What the Research Shows

School Safety Drills and Student Well-Being: What the Research Shows

April 21, 2026 · 19 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the impact of school safety drills on student well-being and explores research findings on their effectiveness and consequences.

(00:00:00) School Safety Drills and Student Well-Being: What the Research Shows (00:02:17) What Are School Safety Drills and Why Do We Have Them? (00:04:40) Effectiveness & Impact of Drills (00:07:17) The Problem with a One-Size-Fits-All Approach (00:09:34) Short and Long-Term Health Impacts of Safety Drills (00:12:18) Improving Practice: What Works and What Needs Reform (00:15:58) Looking Forward: Policy, Practice, and Student Well-being Active shooter drills are now a routine part of school life in the United States, but what does the research actually say about their impact on students and school communities? University of Michigan public health researcherJustin Heinzebreaks down what we know about school safety drills: how they vary across districts, their intended goals, and the unintended mental health, psychological and emotional consequences they can have on school communities. Heinze also shared emerging best practices for schools looking to balance school safety preparedness with student well-being — and what policymakers, educators, and parents should know. ----- Learn more about the University of Michigan School of Public Health: publichealth.umich.edu Follow us on…

People in this episode

Guest: Justin Heinze

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Mentioned in this episode

Products: University of Michigan School of Public Health

Places: the United States

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