The shooting deaths at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, sent shockwaves across the nation in December of 2012. This was not the first time that educators and safety officials received a punch in the gut and a major wakeup call to assess school security. But the lessons from the first punch still ring […]
Blog Archives
The year 2013: School safety in review
2013: School safety in review January 13, 2014 * The year 2013 was one of the most turbulent years for the school safety field since the Columbine era. Some of the highs and lows in our opinion include: Political Special Interest Groups Hijack School Safety – The attack upon Sandy Hook Elementary School on December […]
Sandy Hook skews focus to security equipment, away from human side of school safety
Surveillance cameras and fortified front entranceways with enhanced access control are among the most common security equipment purchases by school districts reacting over the past year to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings. Meanwhile, many schools continue to fail to invest the time and resources into the training, planning, exercising of crisis plans, and other […]
10 lessons learned from the Sandy Hook school shootings
Our team’s analysis of the Sandy Hook Final Report released by the Connecticut State’s Attorney continues with 10 key lessons learned for school security and emergency preparedness. While additional details may be revealed in forthcoming documents from the Connecticut State Police, 10 important lessons from Sandy Hook have emerged based upon the final report, information […]
Failed police radios at Sandy Hook raises common safety issue
Connecticut State Police two-way radios did not work inside Sandy Hook Elementary School, according to the Sandy Hook Final Report released last week by the Connecticut State’s Attorney. The failure of the radios to fully work does not appear to have been a major issue in resolving this event. However, it illustrates a fairly common issue we […]
State’s Attorney report: Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings
The Connecticut State’s Attorney final summary report on the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings for many is an underwhelming, anticlimactic account of an overwhelming tragedy. No earth-shattering new lessons, but repeated themes of past shootings Rather than revealing a stream of earth-shattering new lessons learned, the report sadly reiterates themes heard over and over again from school shootings of […]
Sandy Hook school shooting report: New lessons or old lessons revisited?
A much anticipated report on the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings is due out Monday afternoon. The Connecticut State’s Attorney will present a summary report on the shooting, although the release of the full Connecticut State Police report continues to be delayed. The tactical response of Newtown Police and other first responders will likely receive a […]
Hallelujah (Chicago Musicians Care) – A Gift to Sandy Hook
The one-year anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings is only weeks away. Many look for ways to offer their prayers and memorial gestures to those who lost their lives and to their families. I was blessed to have Kevin Tenbrunsel, the co-founder of the Chicago Musicians Care organization, reach out to share with me their […]