Blog Archives

From the White House to the schoolhouse, there is no perfect security – but by focusing on human factors, we can reduce risks

Posted by on July 23, 2024

The recent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump put the U.S. Secret Service’s security practices under the microscope and today led to the resignation of the Director of the Secret Service. The now-former director of the Secret Service admitted to Congress that there were “significant” and “colossal” problems with security at former President Trump’s […]

Are parents a growing school security threat? Parents threatening, attacking students and teachers at schools

Posted by on March 24, 2024

The headlines include parents dressing down to bypass security and watch their kid attack another student, parents attacking a classroom teacher, and parents going after other students having conflicts with their kids. Principals and their school school safety teams prepare for many potential school security and emergency situations from school shootings to natural disasters and […]

Why voluminous school emergency/crisis templates are setting up school leaders for disaster – and why the absence of engaged school emergency/crisis teams is inexcusable

Posted by on January 20, 2024

The U.S. Department of Justice review of the Uvalde school shooting observed that, “UCISD’s campus safety teams met infrequently, and annual safety plans were based largely on templated information that was, at times, inaccurate.” (See https://portal.cops.usdoj.gov/resourcecenter/content.ashx/cops-r1141-pub.pdf ) The template approach to school safety is failing school leaders and school security officials. Filling in the blanks […]

Peeling back the onion: Strong collaborative models requiring time and persistence are the core of effective school security and emergency preparedness programs (insights from Dr. Stephen Bayne)

Posted by on October 9, 2023

The best school security and emergency preparedness is often less visible or even invisible. Research and decades of school safety experience point to the importance of relationships and collaboration within school communities.  Dr. Stephen Bayne, a veteran California school safety and emergency preparedness expert, graciously shares his insights based upon his years of experience in […]

The dangers of “I think” and “I believe” in school security and emergency preparedness planning

Posted by on September 26, 2023

It is very common in our interviews of principals and their building safety/crisis/emergency teams (the names vary) to have answers to our questions begin with “I believe” or “I think.” “I believe there is someone always at the church office.” “I think we can get school buses to our school in about 20 minutes from […]

School administrators must revisit traditional school safety, security, and emergency crisis plans – not just COVID safety plans.

Posted by on October 7, 2021

Students and teachers are back to in-person learning in most schools across the nation. Unfortunately, instances of school shootings, gun confiscations, stabbings, and other violence have also returned to our nation’s schools. In the past week alone, there have been at least four school shootings around the U.S., the most recent on Wednesday at a […]

How to do school safety drills while not colliding with COVID-19 safeguards

Posted by on July 18, 2020

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 Video: COVID-19 Student and Staff School Reentry Planning

Posted by on May 2, 2020

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 […]

Securing a Hospital Emergency Department in the Aftermath of a School Shooting

Posted by on August 22, 2019

(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 […]

School safety considerations for mail handling, suspicious packages, and bomb threats

Posted by on October 26, 2018

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 […]