“Good Afternoon!!
I want to THANK GSBA so much for selecting Gilmer County for the safety grant award ………. we do appreciate it greatly ……… especially during times like these, good news is even more cherished ……… we also appreciate the webinars, safety scenarios, and all the others services that are offered …….. we appreciate the spirit by which GSBA offers those services …. very friendly, very helpful, and very caring …….. Thank you again ……… Have a Wonderful Remainder of the Day.”
James Jones
Safety Coordinator
Gilmer County Schools
“I have been a Superintendent for eight years and on two different occasions I have had a major facility claim on our District’s insurance policy. On both occasions our carrier was Georgia School Boards Association (GSBA). The first claim was a major fire that destroyed an administrative building and the second claim was Hurricane Michael in October of 2018.
I cannot say enough about the service that I have received from Georgia School Boards Risk Management. The day after Hurricane Michael, GSBA had a crew on the ground cleaning debris and removing trees from our facilities. They immediately understood the importance of us getting back online as soon as possible so that our community could begin to get back to normal. GSBA set up a mobile command post in our district and was on the ground working with local contractors and our maintenance staff ensuring that every piece of property damaged from the storm was put back and made whole before leaving our district. They worked to ensure that we were completely taken care of. We did not have to wait on adjusters or haggle over what was covered. We simply said something was destroyed and GSBA took care of it.
As a Superintendent, I cannot imagine trying to recover from an incident like Hurricane Michael without GSBA. Their understanding of school business and the way they handle claims sets them apart from the competition. I highly recommend GSBA to any district. GSBA has been one of the best companies that I have had the pleasure to deal with in my tenure.”
Tim Cochran
Superintendent
Decatur County Schools
“During the recent turmoil that was caused by Hurricane Michael, GSBA and SRM (ServiceMaster Recovery Management) helped make a tragic and chaotic situation manageable. Both companies reached out to see how they could assist us with the recovery process and stayed in constant contact with us along the way. They helped to streamline the process for us when we were dealing with the loss incurred by Michael. The Risk Management group at GSBA was great to work with as well as the representatives from SRM. GSBA did a good job of helping ease our minds and as we worked through the process. Their help was invaluable.”
Allen Martin
Director of Personnel and Operations
Miller County School System
“Some people claim that insurance is only as good as the agent. GSBA has validated that statement. Jill Smith, from GSBA, called me at 6:30 on the morning after Hurricane Michael. She didn’t ask me if I needed her help, she notified me that help was already on the way. True to her word, Steve Morgan from ServiceMASTER was in Donalsonville two hours later. Jill, along with the entire GSBA team, has been leading our school system through the recovery process sparing no expense to make sure our facilities are properly repaired by professionals trained to handle this type of recovery. GSBA has exceeded all my expectations. With approximately four million in damages, we simply could not have handled this project without guidance from GSBA.”
Brinson Register
Superintendent
Seminole County Schools
“I just wanted to take a moment to sing the praises of the SRM team (Service Master Recovery) that is stationed here at Oatland for tornado recovery. They have been absolutely amazing! It has been so comforting to have them on site making sure that the work is done well and that we have everything we need. I can’t say enough good things about the team. Ryan DeLong, Brandon Tech and Steve Morgan have all been great to work with. After we were hit by the tornado, I had this overwhelming sense of anxiety about the road to recovery. However, shortly after meeting the team from SRM, I knew we were in good hands and I was able to relax and focus on what I needed to do to get Oatland back to its old self. The work has been progressing so much faster than I expected. I really do appreciate the team from SRM! It’s been like having our own guardian angels! One of our staff members even calls them “the angels” and makes little flying motions with her hands when she talks about them! I thought perhaps you could pass this along to the folks at GSBA.”
Heather L. Merbs, Director
Oatland Island Wildlife Center
Savannah-Chatham School District
“As I spoke with Mr. Matthews this morning I told him that Jill has been pleasant to work with this year. As you know when things are stressful, it is relieving to hear a “can do” or “it will be taken care of” voice on the phone.”
Chip Underwood
Assistant Superintendent
Walton County Public Schools
“We are so fortunate that we carry our Risk Management with GSBA. The day of the fire, GSBA had already contacted Belfor Property Restoration to send representatives to the school to assess the damage and devise a plan. The Belfor crew spent the entire weekend cleaning to ensure that the facility was safe for our students and staff to return. Belfor’s presence and expertise alleviated much of the stress that we were feeling and allowed us to reassure our parents and community that the building was safe for the students’ return.”
Dr. Gina G. Williams
Superintendent
Tattnall County Schools
“I am extremely pleased with Belfor Property Restoration and their dedication to our school. Within a matter of hours, Belfor was on site and assessing the damage from the fire. Andrew Goldsberry and Jon Randolph did a superior job in keeping me informed of their every move and continuously reassuring me of the progress being made. It was truly amazing watching the Belfor employees work at such an rapid pace but still paying great attention to detail. Within 72 hours, restoration was completed and students were able to return to school. Belfor was committed to doing whatever it takes to ensure restoration was completed in a timely manner and it was greatly appreciated.”
“VeriClaim, Inc. was committed in making certain our questions were answered and that we had all items accounted for within the classrooms. Kelly Stewart provided us with the reassurance needed after an event of this nature. After speaking with Mr. Stewart it was clear that he had the best interest of our school at hand, and we greatly appreciate his dedication in helping Glennville Elementary School.”
Dr. Kristi Kaiser
Principal, Glennville Elementary School
Tattnall County Schools
“McIntosh County Schools is so very proud and appreciative to be the recipient of one of the GSBA-RMS Safety Grants! All of our school buildings now have security cameras. Transportation and maintenance did not until now, thanks to our safety grant! We will certainly look forward to the opportunity to apply for another GSBA-RMS Safety Grant funding for 2017-2018.”
Dr. Diane J. Richardson
Deputy Superintendent
McIntosh County Schools
“David, thank you so much for all that you do. This is a great scenario for me and one that I will be taking a very hard look at starting today.”
Andy Micacchione
Director of Transportation
Douglas County Schools
“…that was my first time attending the Risk Management annual meeting but it won’t be my last. The information I received was timely and helpful….you presented a great deal of information in a short amount of time. It was one the best meetings/conferences I have attended. Many thanks!”
Melissa Williams
Superintendent
Rabun County School System
Stuart Sheriff is an active member of the GSBA RMS Large Member Meetings and according to him, “the information I receive at those meetings and the networking with other members is invaluable.” He goes on to say, “this information would be very difficult to get with a commercial insurance company because they don’t focus on the issues that are facing school districts like GSBA RMS does.” Sheriff especially appreciates the services provided to Gilmer County School District by GSBA RMS, because as a small district the staff is limited on how much time and effort can be devoted to risk management resources. According to Sherriff, “GSBA RMS gives us everything we need so we don’t have to reinvent the wheel.”
Recently, GCSD was awarded a GSBA RMS safety grant in the amount of $4,800 to assist with prevention of slips, trips and falls. “This is just another example of how GSBA RMS is the best option for Georgia Public Schools,” according to Sheriff.
Stuart Sheriff
Assistant Superintendent of Administrative Services
Gilmer County School District
“Thank you for the quick response! This is exactly what we needed to know and the resources you shared are spot on…As I expected, customer service from our advocate and other GSBA staff members continues to be above reproach. “
Staci Newsome
Chief Financial Officer
Habersham County Schools
“Thank you, Ricky, and the entire team for your quick response to our needs in Ware County. Robert and I were in constant communications Friday and Saturday. I was also on sight Saturday morning. Today, I walked through Ware Middle and we were able to conduct classes in all of our rooms with the exception of the lab. We appreciate GSBA’s support of Ware County during our time of need.
GSBA is always quick to respond in a time of crisis such as Friday’s fire or a natural disaster like last year’s micro-burst that took off the roof to our auditorium. We truly appreciate not only the rapid response but also the immediate on site clean up and quick repair. We experienced very little down time. In fact, we had three incidents over the past two years and we ended up losing zero school days total! Thanks GSBA!”
Jim L. LeBrun
Superintendent
Ware County Schools
“I want to thank you and your crew for the expediency, professionalism and detail in response to our flooding incident at Jackson High School. We sensed very quickly upon your arrival that we were in good hands.
It was a pleasure to work with you, sir!”
Mr. Shannon David Christian
Assistant Superintendent of Operations
The Butts County School System
“I am a new Risk Manager for our district and GSBA has been vital to my transition. I have contacted GSBA representatives several times with questions, trying to gain a better understanding, and they (GSBA staff) are always ALWAYS willing to help, are friendly, and knowledgeable about RM. One thing that I love the most is when I want to know what is the best practice from other districts, GSBA will do the research for me and give me solid advice, I know that I can trust them.”
Tracy Fox
Director of Risk Management
Muscogee County School District
“GSBA is the pacesetter and continually raising the watermark with the focus on Safety, Accident Prevention and Best Practice Development. The sharing of innovative loss control measures and examples of potential reparations within our membership, persistently strengthens the GSBA family throughout the State. The greatest savings and values realized by members are the accidents, injuries or losses that are prevented through GSBA’s best practice preparation which are shared through membership participation.
The membership as a team is so powerful in sharing ideas, protocols and experience, which prevents similar mistakes and costly litigation across the GSBA Family. The membership meetings are so valuable with identification of trends, deficiencies and developing prevention process through the resource of membership wisdom and knowledge.
I was once told as a young fledgling pilot in training in the 60s by my very senior instructor pilot. ‘There are two types of pilots. There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but never old , bold pilots’… Using checklists, asking for help, sharing ideas and in-depth planning makes for a lot of uneventful, successful flights. GSBA is and has been that beacon for this old pilot throughout the many years.”
Rob Gordon
Director of Risk Management
Savannah-Chatham School District
“Thank you so much for your thorough and helpful reply to my questions. We will be using the AED Plan for athletics and are very interested in developing AED training videos.
As always, you and GSBA have gone above and beyond to serve our district. We are very appreciative!”
Chuck Bell
Superintendent of Schools
Elbert County School District