The race was on. A 8-year-old third-grader jumped out of his chair and ran out of the room while his classmates cheered him on. Less than a minute later, he dashed back with an AED. The classmates applauded. 

When he flung open the door of the cabinet housing the AED (automated external defibrillator) it set off an alarm and red flashing light to alert staff of the emergency. If it had been a real emergency, these actions could have helped save someone's life.

Leah Pacholke, a CPR and first-aid instructor at Immanuel Lutheran School, has spent two years teaching students and teachers about the AED, even training them in front of the students, how to use it, and timing students' delivery of the devices. The kids can run faster, leaving the adults to do CPR while they're retrieving the device. Students unable to reach the AED cabinet are told to seek out someone who can help them; and to tell older students and adults to turn on and listen to the AED, which then gives voice prompts; as well as being aware of AEDs in other public locations.

Michigan doesn’t require schools to have AEDs or to conduct AED drills.