Campus recovering after massacre

police tape webIt’s been more than five years now since a 16-year-old student at Red Lake High School in Minnesota shot and killed his grandfather and the grandfather’s girlfriend. He then took the grandfather’s police-issue weapons and squad car to his school, where he…

It’s been more than five years now since a 16-year-old student at Red Lake High School in Minnesota shot and killed his grandfather and the grandfather’s girlfriend. He then took the grandfather’s police-issue weapons and squad car to his school, where he killed five students, one teacher, and an unarmed security guard before taking his own life. It still stands as one of the nation’s deadliest school shootings.

But today, the school on the Red Lake Indian Reservation is a much happier place. The district has received more than $2 million in school improvement grants—funds that are being used to develop staff and new curriculum with the idea of increasing student test scores and graduation rates.…Read More

More schools take security seriously

keypadAs we enter a new school year, I’m happy to see several districts spent the summer making investments in keeping their students, faculty and staff safer. One New Mexico district partnered with a new…

As we enter a new school year, I’m happy to see several districts spent the summer making investments in keeping their students, faculty and staff safer.

•    One New Mexico district partnered with a new bus service provider that equips each bus with three surveillance cameras–one facing the students in their seats, another watching as the kids step on board and the last monitoring the road.  District drivers were immediately pleased.…Read More

Train and maintain

OTE_lab_close_0ne of the more confusing stories I’ve read lately comes from East St. Louis, Ill., where burglars have taken more than $1 million in…

One of the more confusing stories I’ve read lately comes from East St. Louis, Ill., where burglars have taken more than $1 million in computers and other expensive electronic equipment from local schools over the past year–yet there have been no records of any requests for prosecution of the crimes.

And there is even disagreement among how many laptop computers have been stolen, with the reports ranging between 52 and 110.…Read More

Copper thieves continue to strike

copper_wireSchools are not immune. I recently wrote about an Oklahoma district hard hit by thieves taking or gutting…

Copper theft continues to escalate across the country. Churches, doctor’s offices, retail businesses, and government facilities are all targets. And schools are not immune. I recently wrote about an Oklahoma district hard hit by thieves taking or gutting air conditioners for the copper inside the units.

As the price of copper hits new highs almost daily, the Fort Worth Independent School District has fallen victim to copper thieves. The district recently had to replace damaged air conditioners on nine campuses at a cost well in excess of $100,000. The self-insured district, like nearly all others in the country, is strapped for cash.…Read More

We owe our students more

bully1Once a student becomes a victim of a school crime, he or she becomes more aware of…

Once a student becomes a victim of a school crime, he or she becomes more aware of other potential criminal activity, becomes a victim of bullies, or is just generally fearful of a future attack.  A recently released survey from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center of Education Statistics included some interesting numbers about theft, gangs, drugs, and bullying on campus.

During the 2006-07 school year, just more than four percent of students ages 12-18 reported being a victim of any crime–theft, violent victimization, or serious violent victimization–at school.…Read More

Detroit’s commitment to school security

public-safetyThe Detroit Public Schools is moving briskly forward with plans to spend nearly…

The Detroit Public Schools is moving briskly forward with plans to spend nearly $42 million to improve safety for its students, faculty, and staff.

The money, approved by voters in a 2009 bond measure, will add 100 security cameras to each high school, 32 in middle schools and 24 on elementary campuses.  There are plans for ID badges to be issued to all students and faculty.…Read More

Great cooperation between school and law enforcement officials

PoliceSchoolSafetyDay-lgSchool and law enforcement officials in Central Florida’s Volusia County are to be commended for their efforts to…

School and law enforcement officials in Central Florida’s Volusia County are to be commended for their efforts to prepare sheriff’s deputies and other first responders for a possible school shooting.

Shortly after the 1999 Columbine massacre, the sheriff’s department began training to preserve life and property with an emphasis on being able to get kids safely away from a school where a shooting incident was in progress.…Read More

Handcuffs for first graders?

hands-in-handcuffsHow far can a school go in disciplining students? Twenty states have laws permitting…

How far can a school go in disciplining students?

Twenty states have laws permitting corporal punishment in schools and in the most recent statistics from 2005-06, more than 223,000 students were subjected to physical punishment during the school year. But the numbers have been steadily declining since more than 1.5 million students were struck in 1976. Corporal punishment has its detractors, but also many very staunch defenders.…Read More

Schools: Protect yourselves

arrestingHere’s another story that leaves me shaking my head. A Midwestern school district has reported…

Here’s another story that leaves me shaking my head. A Midwestern school district has reported thefts of air-conditioning units at four schools this summer. The damages total more than $80,000. At one school alone, thieves–looking for valuable copper tubing–made off with 13 entire units. Two other schools reported a total of 10 units stolen. Another campus had seven units destroyed as the thieves searched for copper.

One official said the district has insurance, but with a $100,000 deductible. The loss so far is equivalent to the salaries of two teachers, he said. Not many districts can afford this type of loss.…Read More

Don’t ‘pass the trash’

DeniedStampAn investigation in 2008 by the state of Oregon found that 47 schools in the state had made a “pass the trash” deal over the previous five years. “Pass the trash” is a dangerous…

Thorough background checks are one of the best ways to ensure that the administrators, teachers, and staff you hire and volunteers for your campus don’t have potentially dangerous skeletons in their closets.…Read More

What price on student safety?

PoliceStudentsOne of the most important security measures any district can employ is a program in which…

School resource officers are one of the most important security measures any district can employ. This is a program in which schools and local law enforcement have worked hand-in-hand to help improve safety and security on campuses. In an emergency, having a trained and armed police officer at each school can help save lives and limit property loss.

Police and sheriff’s departments across the country also recognize the deterrent value to criminals by having a dedicated officer at each school. It’s been a win-win situation.…Read More

Cameras up North

Emergency firefighting cover - Operation FrescoAlthough security cameras in schools raise staff and student privacy issues, they can be highly beneficial when it comes to deterring crime.

Up in British Columbia, school cameras are supposed to be used only as a last resort for controlling vandalism and other crimes. Boards of education are required to seek approval from school planning councils before approving camera installations.

These rules are intended to give parents a voice on school safety issues and protect the privacy of students, faculty, and staff. It’s always a good idea to get parents to be involved in their children’s safety at school.…Read More