According to most sources—including the National Crime Prevention Council, the U.S. Justice Department, and the U.S. Department of Education—school security is at an all-time high. Over the last several decades the rate at which children are victimized at school (bullied, robbed, physically assaulted, etc.) has plummeted. But by some measures the …
In the United States, school shootings resulting in injury or death are now a weekly occurrence. In 37% of these attacks someone dies. Just in the last five years, we’ve seen a total of 160 school shootings resulting in 59 deaths and 124 non-fatal injuries. By contrast, fires are 76 times more common …
Even though he has worked with schools for decades, helping them enhance their security and reduce threats, and consulting on bulletproof school entryways, Total Security Solutions CEO Jim Richards is still sobered by the latest numbers: School shootings resulting in injury or death are now happening weekly in the United States. …
The tragic mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary five years ago marked a significant turning point for school safety. It prompted a surge in building modifications across the nation as school officials worked hard to revamp their safety programs and control access to their facilities. The Sandy Hook incident sparked a tremendous …
For Atoka Elementary, located in Oklahoma, student safety is paramount. Because of its location, the school regularly faces the threat of severe weather. The school board purchased six bulletproof safe rooms, placing them in areas throughout the school. Installing these rooms is just one way the school is taking proactive precautions on possible threats …
As school administrators and school security professionals begin to consider security upgrades, budgeting and planning tend to be front of mind. “But there are some pitfalls to keep in mind,” Total Security Solutions CEO Jim Richards notes, “background assumptions or biases that sometimes get administrators off course, and lead to some bad …
According to data from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Hate Crime statistics, over the last five years the U.S. has averaged around 120 anti-Semitic “intimidation” crimes per year. Although it’s difficult to determine what portion of those are bomb threats (the FBI’s publicly available statistics are limited), it appears that there are usually fewer than two dozen JCC-targeted bomb threats in a given year. By contrast, on January 9 and 18 of this year American JCC’s experienced dozens of bomb threats—those two days alone accounted for roughly twice as many JCC-targeted bomb threats as all of 2015.
There are reasonable things for kids to worry about during the school day: fitting in with their peers, avoiding bullies, and passing the dreaded pop quiz. It’s upsetting to think that children today might go to school afraid that they will experience or witness violence. Kids are exposed to graphic …
Public and private schools in the U.S. take the threat of school violence very seriously hiring school resource officers to keep both students and staff safe in school, installing bullet resistant barriers in schools, and training both students and staff members on procedures to follow should an active shooter situation arise in, around or near their school.
The notion of collaborative learning is becoming increasingly popular in primary and secondary education. Schools are moving away from teacher-centric learning highlighted by long lectures and moving toward more active learning, where students work in small groups to learn hands-on and serve both as the student and teacher.