The headline, “5 teen suicides put focus on bullying issue in Mentor,” should have read, “5 teen suicides put focus on youth mental health issues.” This Monday Plain Dealer article in Cleveland, Ohio, is the latest in a number of national news stories linking bullying with incidents of teen suicide. I first addressed this last […]
Blog Archives
Federal Court Rules on School Visitor Management System Suit
Does requiring parents and other visitors to provide personal identification to determine whether they are registered sex offenders violate the visitors’ constitutional rights? According to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, in affirming a decision of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, the answer is, “No.” Plaintiffs-Appellants Larry and Yvonne Meadows […]
School Safety: Are You Doing What You Say You Are Doing?
Disconnects between what is on paper and what actually occurs in day-to-day practice in school safety can present school leaders with safety risks and potential legal liability. One Midwest school district was challenged in a law suit for allegedly not following its emergency plan when a student choked on a hot dog in the school […]
Bullycide: Death by Bullying or Deeper Mental Health Issues?
Does bullying cause suicide? You would think so if you read and hear some of the headlines, comments, and advocacy by anti-bullying law special interests following several suicides completed by youth who were reported victims of chronic bullying at school. I certainly do not question whether these kids were bullied. I do not question whether the bullying added significant […]
How Homegrown Terrorism is a Threat to School Safety
The U.S. has been slow to respond to homegrown radicals, creating a vulnerability for domestic terrorism right here in the U.S., according to a new report by the co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission. The Associated Press highlighted their findings in Report: US must deal with homegrown terror problem. The full report is available at Assessing the […]
Back to the Future: School Safety at a Pre-Columbine Climate?
School safety budget cuts, educators distracted with academic reform, and skewed school safety policy and funding are creating a “deja vu” feeling for some school safety specialists who were around prior to the 1999 Columbine High School attack. As I recall, the focus on school safety in the months and years before the shootings in Pearl […]
Why Caring About School Safety Just Isn’t Good Enough
Does your principal and superintendent really care about school safety? Chances are good the answer is, “Yes.” The problem is that caring alone is just not enough today. Educators are on overload with academic, budget, facility, and other urgent day-to-day issues. They care about school safety, but it is increasingly challenging for them to find the time […]
Can Your School Staff Communicate in a Crisis?
School campuses are often very large with multiple floors and even have multiple buildings on one campus in some districts. Two-way radios are commonplace in many of our nation’s schools as a tool for administrators, security personnel, and key staff to communicate on security and supervision issues. Not only are they helpful with day-to-day security issues, […]
School Safety Quote: The Federal Government & School Safety
A school safety chief who follows my e-newsletter and blog sent this thought along last week after monitoring my posts on shifts in federal school safety policy and funding: When I hear, “I’m from the federal government and I’m here to help you,” I always have one question: Which one is it — are you […]
Cyberbullying & Sexting: Expectations for School Principals
“Principals can’t police the Internet all night and all weekend.” I hear this a lot from school administrators. Parents, however, often have a different (and unrealistic) perspective on the matter. My take is that school administrators cannot be expected to police the Internet all night and all weekend. Parents should also not view school administrators as the […]