EMC Insurance Companies Announces New School Safety Initiative

Providing comprehensive staff training from SafeSchools® to member districts, free of charge

Cincinnati, OH /PRNewswire/ - EMC Insurance Companies is partnering with SafeSchools to create safer learning environments for its insured schools. Schools insured by EMC will now have complimentary access to SafeSchools Training, the leading web-based safety training and compliance management system specifically designed for school employees.

It's important for school staff to receive training on school safety concerns such as slips and falls, overexertions, science lab hazards, transportation safety and medical or facility emergencies. With decreasing budgets, finding new and efficient ways to train staff becomes even more essential for administrators. Companies like EMC are looking for innovative ways to help.

"EMC Insurance Companies partnered with SafeSchools to help improve safety and security for school staff members, students and visitors by providing free access to high-quality online staff training, that's easy to use. Providing SafeSchools Training is one more way that EMC is helping its policyholders increase safety and minimize losses," said Jerry Loghry , Loss Prevention Information Manager with EMC.

The SafeSchools Staff Training system includes a comprehensive library of more than 250 online courses covering a wide range of important school safety topics such as Bullying Prevention; Bloodborne Pathogens; Sexual Harassment; Slips, Trips and Falls; Visual Weapons Screening and more. Each SafeSchools Training course is 100 percent school-focused and written by a leading authority on school safety. The training is available online, reducing the need for costly in-service days and time out of the classroom. Each course completion is automatically tracked and recorded by a state-of-the-art compliance management system, and a variety of valuable reports are available on-demand for administrators. Using SafeSchools Training, districts can comply with important state mandates and develop a sound risk management culture to help mitigate exposure and losses.

"EMC understands that SafeSchools Training fosters a culture of safety in a school community because it helps staff members be more aware of safety hazards. And, awareness is key to prevention, and prevention is always the goal," said Brian Taylor , President and Chief Executive Officer, SafeSchools.

SafeSchools Training has helped more than 4,000 districts nationwide reduce costs and increase safety through effective staff training. Districts that have most successfully implemented the online training program have realized a 51 percent decrease in the severity of property and liability claims and a 58 percent decrease in workers' compensation claims – saving hundreds of thousands of educational dollars a year. For an overview of the SafeSchools Training system, please visit www.safeschools.com/videos.

EMC appointed agents who would like to learn more about SafeSchools Training may contact their EMC branch office or Jim Nulsen , SafeSchools National Accounts Director at (800) 434-0154, ext. 7009 or e-mail jnulsen@safeschools.com.

About EMC Insurance Companies
Web sites: www.emcins.com, www.CountonEMC.com

EMC Insurance Companies is among the top 60 insurance organizations in the country based on net written premium, with assets over $3 billion and more than 2,100 employees. The company was organized in 1911 to write workers' compensation protection in Iowa. Today, EMC provides property and casualty insurance products and services throughout the United States and writes reinsurance contracts worldwide. Operating under the trade name EMC Insurance Companies, Employers Mutual Casualty Company and one or more of its affiliated companies is licensed in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

About SafeSchools
Web site: www.safeschools.com

SafeSchools LLC, a subsidiary of Scenario Learning LLC, is the leading developer of safety and compliance solutions for the K-14 market, including award-winning online systems for staff training, incident reporting and tracking, and MSDS management. Located in Cincinnati, Ohio, the company serves 4,000 districts and 19 strategic partners nationwide. The company's flagship product, SafeSchools Training, was recently honored for the third year in a row, with a prestigious education industry Top 100 Products designation by District Administration magazine.