Scenario Learning (R) and Safety National (TM) Help Educators Combat Declining Budgets - Innovative Partnership Will Reduce K-14 Workers' Compensation Losses, Saving Money

    CINCINNATI, OH, May 25, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- A Google (TM) search of spring 2010 education-related headlines is telling - "California Budget Crisis Diaries: K-12 education has bigger cuts," "Virginia legislators target K-12 schools in budget cuts," and "College leaders raise alarm on budget cuts." From coast to coast, district and college budgets are declining.

A major area of expense for districts and colleges alike is workers' compensation claims that often result from seemingly innocent behavior - a teacher stands on a desk to remove a poster from the wall and falls, injuring her ankle. Or a campus maintenance worker doesn't follow proper procedure on scaffolding and is critically hurt. The scenarios for K-14 work-related injuries are numerous and the impact to an already tight fiscal budget can be disastrous.

To help districts and colleges achieve loss reduction in workers' compensation, Scenario Learning, developers of SafeSchools and SafeColleges, award-winning safety and compliance training solutions for the K-14 market, and Safety National, a leading provider of alternative risk funding solutions for workers' compensation, today announced a new partnership to help make U.S. educational institutions a safer place to work and learn.

The new partnership allows Safety National member districts to subscribe to the SafeSchools or SafeColleges programs at up to 50% off the standard rate - a major savings for these institutions. Safety National will also advise Scenario Learning on the development of new SafeSchools and SafeColleges custom courses that will specifically focus on reducing work-related injuries at educational facilities. These new courses will be used to train educational staff on proper procedures, ultimately resulting in significant cost savings.

"SafeSchools and SafeColleges deliver the most school-specific training available and that was a key factor in finalizing our partnership," said Treasa Turnbeaugh, Client Services and Risk Control Manager for Safety National. "SafeSchools and SafeColleges courses are authored by leading safety experts and specifically designed to meet the unique situations that educators face every day."

SafeSchools is the leading web-based training and compliance system for K-12 schools. A comprehensive library of 100% school-focused courses, written by the nation's leading experts, cover important topics like Bloodborne Pathogens; Slips, Trips, and Falls; Office Ergonomics; Back Injuries and more. These courses can easily be assigned to staff members, who conveniently take the courses online. The SafeSchools Compliance Management System automatically tracks course completions, and generates real-time reports for administrators. Other administrative features, including automatic email notification, and a district policy acceptance tracker, completely automate the training and tracking process for an entire district. Using the SafeSchools system, districts can comply with important state regulations and develop a sound risk management culture to help mitigate exposure and reduce losses.

SafeColleges leverages the same award-winning training and tracking functionality as the SafeSchools platform, but includes custom courses and features that are designed specifically for the postsecondary market and campus employees.

The SafeSchools and SafeColleges programs will be part of Safety National's MAP Client services, a program designed to assist the company's policyholders with injury prevention and claim cost containment through management, analysis and prevention. MAP Client Services offers a range of online resources, self-assessment tools and e-learning systems.

"Safety National understands that proper training is key to loss prevention in schools and on campuses. I'm impressed by the innovative approaches Safety National is taking to help their policyholders control costs. Providing SafeSchools and SafeColleges to their customers at a discount will help reduce losses and when losses are reduced, already tight budget dollars can be focused on more important things, like learning," said Brian Taylor, President and CEO of Scenario Learning.

About Scenario Learning
Scenario Learning is the leading developer of safety training and compliance solutions for the K-14 market, including SafeSchools, SafeColleges, SchoolMSDS and LiveTip. Located in Cincinnati, Ohio, the company was recently awarded a 2010 BESSIE Award for educational excellence and currently serves more than 2,000 districts nationwide. For more information, visit www.safeschools.com.

Media Contact:
Donna McMullin
Director of Marketing
Scenario Learning
800.434.0154, ext 7020
[email protected]

About Safety National
Safety National provides alternative risk funding solutions within specialized areas where the company's experience and expertise is unmatched. Since 1942, Safety National has pioneered new products for the self-insured community and provided unparalleled service to employers nationwide as the leading and longest continual provider of excess workers' compensation coverage in the insurance industry. For more information, please visit www.safetynational.com.

Media Contact:
Ryan McClure
Corporate Communications Manager
Safety National
314.692.9548
[email protected]

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