Kip Kendrick, Presiding Commissioner

Justin Aldred, District I Commissioner

Janet Thompson, District II Commissioner

Roger B. Wilson

Boone County Government Center

801 E. Walnut St., Rm 333

Columbia, MO 65201-7732

(573) 886-4305 (573) 886-4311

Boone County Commission News Release

Boone County OEM Expands School Reunification Readiness

COLUMBIA, Mo. (October 6, 2026) - The Boone County Office of Emergency Management (BCOEM) is continuing its investment in school emergency preparedness by providing the Centralia R-VI School District and Southern Boone County R-I School District with equipment to support student reunification following a serious emergency.

The equipment includes a Reunification Operation Kit and impacted-site support materials based on the Standard Reunification Method developed by The “I Love U Guys” Foundation. The kits contain equipment and supplies designed to help school officials and emergency response partners organize and manage reunification operations following an evacuation or other major incident.

Centralia R-VI School District will house reunification equipment that can support schools in northern Boone County. Centralia will work with the Sturgeon R-V School District, Harrisburg R-VIII School District, and Hallsville R-IV School District to make the equipment available if one of those districts experiences an emergency requiring reunification support. If needed, Centralia personnel can help transport the equipment to the affected district.

Southern Boone County R-I School District in Ashland will also house reunification equipment, which will be available to support Southern Boone schools as well as any other K-12 school in Boone County, should the need arise.

Columbia Public Schools previously purchased reunification kits using district funding.

Together, these resources place reunification equipment in different parts of Boone County and provide another way for school districts to support one another during a major emergency.

“We hope there is never a day when our schools have to use this equipment for a real emergency, but if that day comes, we want the training, tools, and relationships to already be in place,” said Boone County Emergency Management Director Chris Kelley. “We thank our school districts for their continued partnership, participation in training, and willingness to support one another during an emergency. This effort works because our schools and public safety partners are planning and preparing together.”

The equipment is part of a multiyear effort by Boone County OEM and local school districts to strengthen school emergency preparedness.

Over the past three years, Boone County OEM has brought three-day reunification training based on guidance from The “I Love U Guys” Foundation to Boone County. Staff from all public school districts in Boone County have participated in the training, which helps school personnel and emergency response partners understand the roles and steps involved in moving students from an affected school and safely reuniting them with parents or guardians at another location.

“Equipment by itself does not make a community prepared,” Kelley said. “The real value comes from having people who have trained together, understand the process, and know how to use these resources. These kits help turn that training into an operational capability.”

BCOEM will continue working with Boone County schools and public safety partners on planning, training, exercises, and coordination to strengthen school emergency preparedness throughout the county.

Centralia R-VI School District Superintendent Dr. Steven Chancellor and BCOEM Director Chris Kelley with new school reunification equipment provided by BCOEM.

Southern Boone County R-I School District officials and BCOEM Director Chris Kelley with reunification equipment.
L-R: Jacob Watson, Assistant Superintendent; Kristen Colbert, Director of Facilities; Chris Kelley, BCOEM Director; Tabitha Shutt, Facilities Support Assistant; Dr. Tim Roth, School Superintendent

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