Balancing school board meeting security and school administrator safety with parental engagement and First Amendment rights
A growing number of parents are frustrated and angry, in particular over school COVID-19 mask policies and hot topics such as discussions around “critical race theory” and school curriculum. Political dynamics from the federal level down to local school communities are exacerbating these tensions in some school communities. What used to be routine, mundane school […]
How to do school safety drills while not colliding with COVID-19 safeguards
Quick takeaways: Many educators have yet to tackle how they will conduct school safety drills which conflict with COVID-19 social distancing and related best practices State department of education have yet to provide any guidance to school leaders for active shooter, lockdown, fire, tornado, and other drills State-mandated drill requirements have yet to be temporarily […]
New Webinar: COVID-19 Safe School Operational Reentry Planning
New Webinar! Wednesday, May 6, 2020 – 1pm EST Register Now – Space is limited for this one-hour program Register Here This free webinar is designed for PreK-12 superintendents, assistant superintendents, heads of private schools, operational and support services department heads (facilities, transportation, food services, safety and security, health services, student services, communications and community […]
New Video: COVID-19 Student and Staff School Reentry Planning
In this new video, Ken provides an analysis of the school strategic crisis leadership, risk communications, key relationships, and critical operational planning issues required for successful COVID-19 student and staff school reentry: The social, emotional, physical, and educational well-being of students and staff on their first day of return to school will best be determined […]
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and School Safety: Keep calm, have a plan, reduce risks, and communicate
Also see Ken Trump’s Blog: COVID-19 (Coronavirus) and K-12 schools: The time to prepare for student reentry is NOW! Learn more here about our COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Student and Educator Reentry Planning and Preparedness (SERPP) Services. An Oregon Coronavirus patient was identified this weekend as an elementary school employee. In Rhode Island, two members of a Catholic […]
Applying Continuous Improvement models to school safety: Strengthening school security and emergency preparedness to move from “good” to “great”
As educators, especially those with graduate and doctoral degrees, you have been exposed to “continuous improvement” and “improvement science” models as a foundation for strengthening curriculum, instruction, and school leadership. But are you applying continuous improvement models to school safety, security, and emergency preparedness, as well? Continuous improvement models and school safety In Learning to […]
Securing a Hospital Emergency Department in the Aftermath of a School Shooting
(Editor’s Note: This article is a collaboration with Michael S. D’Angelo, CPP, CSC, CHPA, a Board Certified Security Consultant specializing in the security of healthcare facilities. He can be reached at michael@securedirection.net, www.securedirection.net or 786-444-1109. See his biographical information at the end of the article.) As America continues to endure mass shootings at school, security and […]
Parkland one year later: School security and emergency preparedness after the MSD school shooting
During the past half-dozen or so years, I have done an increasing about of expert witness and litigation consulting on pK-12 school security-related lawsuits. These types of cases have included high-profile active shooter cases, such as my retention by the defense for the Sandy Hook Elementary School litigation, as well as rape and other sexual […]
Federal Commission on School Safety report rehashes decades-old best practices, adds a few political twists
Statement by school security expert Kenneth S. Trump, President of National School Safety and Security Services, on the Federal Commission on School Safety’s final report: The Federal Commission on School Safety’s final report largely rehashes school safety, security, and emergency preparedness best practices that have been recognized since the Columbine era nearly 20 years ago. […]
School safety considerations for mail handling, suspicious packages, and bomb threats
The good news in related to 12 bomb-like packages sent to current and former elected officials, along with CNN, is that one person is in federal custody as of the time of this writing. Thank you to our law enforcement professionals and other first responders across the nation for their hard work. This incident raises […]