One of the best security measures any district can employ is a school resource officer (SRO)–a trained police officer assigned to a campus. If an emergency strikes, the officer is there to immediately help take control of the situation. There was a perfect example at the end of August…
Patrick Fiel
School buses are often a likely place for assaults, bullying, and vandalism to occur. In a Chicago suburb, a 3-year-old, hearing-impaired girl was allegedly assaulted on a school bus on her way home…
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…
Not long ago, the decision by a Northeastern school district to install security cameras in two high schools without any announcement to parents, faculty, staff or students stirred up a hornet’s nest…Think outside the box: Doing more with less, Part 2
In my last blog, I wrote about the massive budget deficits facing most school districts, making it vital that everyone learn to do more with less. Yet, at the same time, we can’t overlook the security needs of our campuses. A few thefts or acts of vandalism can cost more than…
More and more school districts are seeing the value of camera systems in helping to protect campuses. There is a reason districts across the country are turning to video surveillance, and that is because…Keep after-school events safe
The start of a new high school football season is a reason to celebrate–but it also is a time for administrators to be on guard against those who find the games an excuse for criminal behavior. And it’s not just football that can lead to security problems on campus. The same can be true for dances, concerts, and other after-school activities. Fortunately, there are some steps that can help control a situation before it gets out of hand…
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…
ne of the more confusing stories I’ve read lately comes from East St. Louis, Ill., where burglars have taken more than $1 million in…
Schools are not immune. I recently wrote about an Oklahoma district hard hit by thieves taking or gutting…