For decades schools have focused on “shatterproof” security windows. This made sense when the gravest threats to our schools were vandalism, extreme weather, or explosive devices. But the threats have changed. While security windows and aftermarket security films are excellent solutions for some forced-entry applications—and can even carry a blast …
Are students safer in school districts that watch their every move on social media? Some schools have started using digital surveillance systems to monitor students’ social media posts. This has prompted privacy advocates to question administrators about the responsible use of social media monitoring tools. As a growing number of …
The school year is done. It’s a good time to take a deep breath and a clear-eyed look at school safety planning. But that can be harder than it seems. The most recent headlines about catastrophic events dominated the school security conversation. But these eye-catching tragedies often have little to …
When it comes to school safety grants, most people focus on federal programs—and for good reason. For example, the Department of Justice awarded more than $70 million in school safety grants this year. FEMA is likewise offering $60 million in nonprofit security improvement grants this year alone. (That’s more than …
Communities are eager to invest in their schools’ safety and physical security. This increasingly includes a push to add school resource officers (SROs), sworn officers, or other armed security to every school. But doing so has proved challenging in many districts. School resource officers—although sometimes the focus of controversial news coverage—are far from …
Every politician and administrator in America is under increasing pressure to improve school safety and security. The result? An avalanche of well-intentioned seminars, dubious “security” products, questionable laws, and controversial policies. And still, there are scarce additional dollars available to support improvements in school safety. Fortunately, some of the highest …
What started as a way to keep school kids safe in tornado-prone Oklahoma has grown into a larger debate about hardening school security. Since 2013, after a deadly tornado tore through Moore, Oklahoma, killing seven elementary school students, districts across the state have installed dozens of tornado safe rooms – …
School safety is always front and center. According to the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, school safety is among the determining factors for both parents and students switching schools. A recent report from Axios found that 68 percent of “Generation Z” (the post-Millennial generation) say that “school shootings are the most …
In December of last year Campus Safety magazine announced that they would immediately stop accepting advertising dollars from companies whose school door barricades fall short of safety and accessibility standards. As Campus Safety noted in their announcement, “these devices … could prevent individuals with disabilities and, under some circumstances, even …
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 …