Open Forum

Original Message:
Sent: 7/21/2026 7:22:00 AM
From: Avi Decter
Subject: RE: Emergency Response plans

You might want to consider adding to your emergency response plan a guide to responding to political and ideological attacks. Ad hoc responses to such attacks often tale too long and produce vitiated statements. An orderly plan for responding with clear lines of authority will make the institution's response more timely andmore effective.

Avi Decter, History Now

We also have a flipchart at every desk, a very comprehensive emergency response plan that goes into a lot more detail (which we put together both for our AAM reaccreditation and for the University of Utah, of which we are a part and that requires it), an emergency communication plan which outlines what to tell the media, and an emergency planning committee which meets monthly, prepares training, does risk assessments, etc.

I'm happy to answer questions here, or share some of those documents if you DM me your email address.

Kindly,

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Axel Estable MBA
Director of Operations
Natural History Museum of Utah - University of Utah
Salt Lake City UT
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Hi - my response is a bit two fold so i apologize if this ends up long.... I am an insurance broker and specialize in Risk management. A big part of that is "how to we handle the emergencies when they are live". My clients look at this from an HR And staff training perspective... but also then from an asset/property protection angle. Depending on your HR Department (or workers compensation and payroll companies) there are some online trainings that can be provided to staff for how to handle those but id ask your payroll and Workers Comp insurance first.. many workers comp insurance programs include some of these or offer the resources to pay for them if its not covered. a big part of this is narrowing down the main "leaders" for the response and making sure they have a live to do list when emergency strikes. and making sure those assigned "leaders" are active employees or changed yearly if staffing demands. 

then there is the 'art property" protection aspect of reducing disaster during a live event and that type of guidance or "manual" should be discussed with your insurance broker .. many fine art insurance or Property insurance programs too would help cover the cost to implement such a manual or program because it makes their client (their insured) more prudent and shows your aversion to risk. 

not sure if this is helpful ! but if i can give some guidance i can try!! 

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Kristina Marcigliano, CLCS
Associate Director · Fine Art, WTW I Willis
Kristina.marcigliano@wtwco.com
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Hi Sherry - I work at a small museum in SW FL. We have a pretty comprehensive emergency prep plan that we share with the historical park within which we are located. We realized this past school season that if we have an active shooter or bomb threat during a field trip, we could have 60 children to deal with...and we weren't sure what the best response would be. In a few weeks, we are having an expert from the local sheriff's department come out and meet with us, look over our grounds and buildings, and advise us on best practices in that type of situation. You may want to consider reaching out to your local law enforcement if it would be helpful for your site.

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Diane Ingram
Museum Supervisor
Manatee County Agricultural Museum
Palmetto FL
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