In April 2026, Nurse Christine Siegel and the chaplains took advantage of a DC Fire/Rescue program that gifted to STA an additional Automated External Defibrillator (AED) for the Little Sanctuary along with an afternoon training session in Hands-Only CPR for faculty and staff. Hands-Only CPR is a relatively new program that removes the rescue breathing component of CPR in an effort to make bystanders more likely to administer potentially life-saving aid. 

All of that inspired Nurse Siegel and Upper School history teacher Ben Labaree (who is a volunteer EMT in Montgomery County) to propose a project whereby all members of Form IV will receive basic CPR training (using American Red Cross protocols) and familiarization with the school’s AEDs. The Parents’ Association generously donated funds to purchase an AED trainer unit that together with CPR mannequins will allow for realistic training scenarios. Students will meet in groups of about ten each for roughly 45-minute sessions in November and December that will fall either during a free period or after classes and before sports. 

In the second semester, Siegel and Labaree plan to run similar Stop the Bleed sessions for the Class of 2029. Over the past several years, Nurse Siegel has placed Stop the Bleed kits around campus (often alongside the AEDs). The goal is to familiarize students with use of the kits so that in an emergency, they could initiate bleeding control until the arrival of additional resources. These sessions will follow American College of Surgeons protocols.