Blog Archives

School safety post-Sandy Hook: Focus on “How?,” not on “Wow!”

Posted by on September 28, 2013

More than nine months have passed since the December 14, 2012, school shooting attack upon Sandy Hook Elementary School in the Newtown, Connecticut, school district where 20 children and 6 school staff members were left dead. The horrific nature of the attack upon our youngest and most vulnerable children — elementary students — served as […]

Hijacking school safety: Politicians, gun control, NRA, & civil rights activists show no shame

Posted by on March 28, 2013

Gun control activists, the National Rifle Association (NRA), civil rights special interest groups, and politicians have hijacked school safety to advance their own political agendas. Meanwhile, little is being done to help principals, teachers, and first responders improve school security on the front lines in education. A closer look reveals individuals and organizations with little-to-no […]

School safety lessons learned: From Cleveland to Newtown (Guest Post)

Posted by on March 24, 2013

Dr. Steve Sroka shares in the following guest article some straight-forward, realistic lessons learned from his more than 30 years working with school violence prevention and safety issues. School Safety Lessons Learned: From Cleveland to Newtown by Stephen Sroka I dealt with school violence before it was fashionable and funded. To me, any child killed […]

Michigan schools cut corners, break laws on safety drills: A failure to focus on fundamentals

Posted by on March 12, 2013

Many Michigan schools are cutting corner and violating both the spirit and letter of state laws on school crisis drills, according to an investigative report by MLive news reporters. A multi-month extensive review of thousands of public records found fire, lockdown, and other drills not being done, not done enough times, and done too late […]

Obama school safety plan falls short; Real target is gun control

Posted by on January 16, 2013

President Obama’s plan in response to the Sandy Hook shootings is heavy on gun control and short on funding for school safety, security, and emergency preparedness. While the Obama Administration, DC politicians, special interest groups, and many media outlets have framed the President’s plan as a “school safety plan,” only three of the 15 pages in […]

Feds fail after Sandy Hook; Security expert says restore cuts, add school safety academies

Posted by on January 14, 2013

  School security expert says federal leaders failed to provide meaningful steps to improve school security after Sandy Hook Trump calls for restoring cut federal programs, new state school safety academies [CLEVELAND] Elected officials have failed to provide meaningful legislation, funding, and resources to help school administrators better secure their schools and prepare for mass […]

School safety: Security assessments post-Sandy Hook shootings

Posted by on January 2, 2013

“Fast” does not equate to “best.” This was my response in a communication with a private school administrator who shared with me yesterday that her school’s board of trustees had been pondering a school security assessment for three months, but then when the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting occurred, they wanted the process expedited. Since scheduling […]

Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings: School safety reflections

Posted by on December 27, 2012

Bulletproof backpacks for students. Bulletproof vests for teachers. Arming teachers. Teaching children to attack armed intruders. These were among the many ideas bantered around in the news, online, and elsewhere across America in the days following the shooting deaths of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. The Today […]

Seasons Greetings from National School Safety and Security Services

Posted by on December 26, 2012

A belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year greeting to our friends, family, and colleagues who follow the School Security Blog. This holiday season is one I will never forget for reasons both bad and good. On the bad side, the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings dominated the week prior to Christmas. I spent […]