Crisis Plan in a BIP: An Overview for School Teams

Most behavior plans never need this section. A few do. When one does, it is the part that adults read under stress, so it has to be short, clear, and agreed in advance.

This guide gives an overview of what a crisis section is for and how the sources describe it. It is not training and does not describe physical interventions.

What the section is for

Colorado's guide says the purpose of a crisis intervention plan is a systematic staff approach to minimizing the intensity of problem behavior. It identifies a student's escalation cycle and shows how staff respond at different levels. It may include proactive strategies, such as time spent building rapport with the student, and strategies for supporting the student afterward and returning to class. The goal, it says, is to reduce the duration and intensity of behaviors, and a strong plan focuses on strategies that reduce the likelihood and intensity of emergencies.

Illinois's guidance defines a crisis as a situation that requires immediate intervention, and says the BIP should state the specific conditions under which a crisis or emergency plan will be used.

When a team writes one

Colorado says not all students with a BIP need a crisis plan. One is needed if a high level of intervention may be required, where a classroom may have to be evacuated, or where some type of physical intervention might be involved. A team asks: has this student's behavior created danger to the student or others, and could it again? If so, a plan written in advance, with everyone's roles clear, is safer than improvising.

Students whose behavior carries risk should also have a plan that teaches alternatives. Colorado says students who have recurring dangerous behavior should have a BIP that focuses on teaching appropriate alternative behaviors, so the crisis section is not the whole plan.

The three phases

Colorado's form divides the section into three phases and says that staff should map their own crisis system's levels onto them.

At phase two, Colorado says, the focus is safety. At phase three it asks how to process the event with the student without placing blame, and how to help the student return to work.

Principles the sources stress

• Behavior communicates. Colorado's guide reminds staff that all behavior serves a purpose, and that "behavior influences behavior," so the plan needs to describe how adults change their own behavior.
• Adult regulation matters. It notes that a dysregulated adult cannot help a student regulate, and suggests teamwork, such as switching which adult responds.
• Prevention first. The plan sits alongside prevention and teaching in the BIP. See what to include in a BIP.
• A team approach. All staff who support the student should be trained in the plan.

State law and policy

Illinois's guidance says the crisis portion of a BIP must be reviewed to make sure it complies with district and state policies on behavior intervention strategies, and that a crisis plan should be carefully and frequently monitored. It also notes that Illinois law allows isolated time out, time out, and physical restraint only when a student's behavior presents an imminent danger of serious physical harm, less restrictive measures have been tried and have not worked, there is no known medical contraindication, and the staff member is trained in safe application. That is one state's statute, cited as an example. Yours may differ.

For that reason, this guide gives no steps for any physical intervention. Any such measure is a matter of state law, district policy, and in-person training from a qualified provider. If your plan could involve one, ask your special education director for the policy and the required training before the plan is finalized.

Start with a risk assessment

Queensland's guide says that for behaviors that are unsafe or may cause injury, a risk assessment should be completed to identify the level of risk and the actions to be taken. That is a natural first step before any crisis section is written. It asks what could happen, how likely it is, who could be harmed, and what is already in place. The answers tell the team whether a crisis section is needed and what it must cover.

What a one-page crisis section might list

A generic outline, with no physical steps, using the structure Colorado describes. Replace the details with your own.

Keep the language plain and the roles named. Colorado stresses that a team approach and shared training are what make such a plan work.

Keeping the section usable

• Write it at the staff's level. Colorado says the plan should be written at the skill level of the people implementing it, not the specialist who designed it.
• Use roles, not names. People change. Roles stay.
• One page. A staff member in a hallway cannot read three.
• Practice it. A plan no one has rehearsed is hard to follow under pressure.
• Review it. After any use, the team meets to look at what happened, without blame.

After an event

Plan for the debrief. Write a factual note, as in documenting incidents factually. Check on the student and the adults. Tell the family promptly, using your district's procedures. Then ask whether the plan worked, whether any early signs were missed, and whether the prevention and teaching parts need to change. See BIP review and revision.

Sharing it

Everyone who may need the section has to know it exists and where it is. See sharing a BIP with all staff. Terms are in the glossary.

Safety comes first

If anyone is in immediate danger, follow your school's safety procedures and call emergency services. This guide is general information and does not replace training or the advice of qualified professionals.