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 […]
Category Archive: School Safety Issues
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 […]
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 […]
Fear mongering article? America’s real school-safety problem
Good theory, perhaps, but clueless in understanding School Resource Officers (SROs), school security, and so-called “zero tolerance.” This is my take on America’s real school-safety problem, an article posted Sunday on salon.com. The article is mostly a Q&A with Aaron Kupchick, author of “Homeroom Security: School Discipline in an Age of Fear.” He spent two years researching “zero […]
How to Protect Elementary Students from Harm
An unusual student disappearance, unexcused student walk-away, or a stranger on an elementary school campus creates anxiety, fear, and often panic in a school-community. The case of Kyron Horman, a second-grade Oregon student who has been missing since June 4th, 2010, has generated intense attention and discussion on elementary school security issues. The seven-year-old never […]
What Constitutes Comprehensive School Safety Policies, Programs, and Funding?
The “bullying summit” held by the U.S. Department of Education this past week drew attention, praise, opposition, and spirited debate depending upon who you talked with about it. As legislators, bureaucrats, educators, media and others jump on the “bullying bandwagon,” what constitutes a more comprehensive and balanced school safety plan? I revisited my July 9, 2009, […]
Are School Security Plans Ready for School Board Meeting Disruptions?
The Wake County (NC) school district spent $20,960 since December for increased security at school board meetings because of concerns about protesters. The conflicts involve protesters opposing the elimination of the district’s socioeconomic diversity policy involving student assignments. Large crowds lead the district to hire off-duty Raleigh police and private security officers. Previously, the district had no armed security at board […]
Pop Quiz on School Safety: Could Your School Leaders Pass The Test?
If a parent unexpectedly asked your school’s principal, superintendent, or school board member the following two questions, could they immediately answer each one with specific responses? Will you name 10 specific strategies your schools are using to prevent crime and violence in your schools? Will you list 10 specific measures your schools have taken to prepare for, […]
“Getting to School Safely” Video Tackles Widespread Elementary Safety Concerns
School shootings get a lot of attention, but traffic and adult behavior at student drop-off and pick-up poses major safety concerns at many schools across the nation. Some of the great challenges occur at elementary schools. In our school safety assessments across the nation, we repeatedly find elementary principals frustrated with juggling school buses, massive parent […]