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National Weather Service certifies Sumner County Schools as 'Storm Ready,' officials say signage and NOAA radios in place
Summary
National Weather Service and district staff told the board Sumner County Schools met Storm Ready criteria — including emergency plans, shelter signage, NOAA radios and site visits across schools — and the certification lasts five years with recertification thereafter.
National Weather Service staff and district emergency coordinators briefed the Sumner County School Board on a multi-step process that led to the district achieving Storm Ready certification.
"This certification is valid for five years," said Caleb Cravens (speaker 7), an incident meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Nashville. He described the 12 major criteria the district met, including an emergency operations plan with designated severe-weather shelter locations, two ways to receive and relay warnings, NOAA weather radios in each facility, two tornado drills annually, and required site visits by NWS personnel.
Bob Carter (speaker 12), who led district project work, said the district walked through each of its 50 schools to verify shelter locations and signage. "We verified that interior hallways and locations away from windows are designated as sheltering locations," Carter said. Board members were told six schools will order Storm Ready display signs to post publicly.
Cravens framed the certification as a voluntary, community-driven effort designed to improve preparedness and reduce vulnerability during severe weather events. "No community is storm proof, but we can be prepared and we can be storm ready," he said, noting the program focuses on planning, education, public awareness and communications among local emergency planning committees.
District staff said the certification will be revisited every five years and that coordinators (Jerica and Bob, identified in the presentation) will oversee ongoing compliance and recertification duties. The board applauded the work and thanked both district staff and the NWS for the collaboration.
