When disaster strikes, the strength of a school community is tested in ways no training can fully prepare for. In the aftermath of an unexpected crisis, one district’s leaders, staff and supporters came together to navigate the unknown, support one another and begin the long road to recovery.

People think of hurricanes as the kind of storm you can pre-pare for—the kind of storm that gives you plenty of warning. But when Hurricane Helene aimed herself at the East Coast in September 2024, the residents of Buncombe County, North Carolina, didn’t expect much more than a couple of days of bad wind and rain up in the mountains. After all, Asheville is over 2,000 feet above sea level and 300 miles from the North Carolina coast...