A look at School Safety 101 units:
Thinking Differently About School Safety
To make our schools safe, educators must expand their thinking and perceptions about school safety beyond active shooter response to include a comprehensive, all hazards, education-focused approach to school safety issues.
Assessing Risks and Vulnerabilities
Many vulnerabilities, hazards, and threats exist in a school setting. Explore the difference between man-made, natural, and technological hazards and discuss how vulnerability assessments can identify and mitigate risks.
Prevention & Preparation: The Building Blocks of School Safety
School safety is not just about response. Planning and preparing for the inevitable crisis event and working to prevent violence requires knowledge and capabilities in the critical building blocks of school safety:
Increasing Student Disclosures – Violence prevention and student support require authentic disclosures from students.
Strategic Supervision and Student Support - An engaged and approachable teaching and administrative staff is critical for student supervision, building positive relationships, and improving school climate.
Visitor Screening and Engagement – Effectively screening and engaging with visitors is a powerful violence prevention measure.
Tools of the Trade – Violence prevention and crisis preparation are enhanced when the right tools are used in daily operations.
Access Control – Providing appropriate levels of access control is crucial in mitigating threats and preventing violence.
Communication Concerns – Timely and effective communication to internal and external stakeholders is central for effective preparation.
Effective Crisis Response
School stakeholders must know how to effectively implement all hazards response procedures when crisis events occur, including best practices in active shooter response.