In this article, Irwin Redlener, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness describes disasters in relation to five phases that may serve as a helpful framework for planning disaster response: (1) before the disaster (pre-disaster); (2) during the disaster (intra-disaster); (3) immediately after the disaster (immediate post-disaster); (4) before normalcy is restored (pre-normalcy); and (5) after the disaster (normalcy). In each of these phases, it is important to consider both one's own leadership responsibilities and the roles that others will play when an emergency occurs. Since the others--including parents, staff, and emergency personnel--will all be involved at the time, they should be consulted and included as much as possible in the planning process.