Why Training Should Never Be Measured by Attendance

Community Readiness Training Lessons Learned

In August of 2025, I had the opportunity to teach a group of students and staff at Boise State University's Recreation Center.

Like many trainings, we covered the fundamentals.

CPR.
Emergency response.
Patient information gathering.
Communication.
Process and procedures.
Resources available following critical incidents.

The participants were engaged, asked great questions, and practiced scenarios.

By all accounts, it was a successful class.

But I've learned something over the years.
Success isn't measured when the training ends.
Success is measured when the training is needed.

About two weeks later, I received a notification.
There had been a real emergency at the facility.

One of those moments where people don't have time to look up a policy, review a manual, or ask someone what to do.
They simply respond.

The team had activated emergency services for someone in the pool having a medical emergency.

They communicated effectively.
They transferred patient care.
They followed many of the principles we had discussed during training.
And had used the additional resources on campus to process what they had just witnessed.

Most importantly, they had confidence.
Not because they knew everything.
But because they had practiced.

Preparedness is interesting that way.
Most people think preparedness is built during the emergency.

It's not.

Preparedness is built long before the emergency ever occurs.
It's built in training rooms.
It's built through conversations.
It's built through repetition.
It's built through creating environments where people are allowed to learn before they are expected to perform.

The reality is that emergencies don't care whether we're ready.
They happen anyway.
The question is whether we've invested enough beforehand to respond effectively when they do.

That experience reminded me why I care so deeply about education, leadership, and organizational readiness.

Because the goal isn't to create impressive training.
The goal is to create confident people.

People who can step forward when it matters most.
And sometimes, the true impact of a class isn't seen until weeks later.

When someone quietly uses what they learned on a day they never expected.