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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, School Safety

  As we see in the news on almost a daily basis, bullying and cyber bullying are major challenges for students, school leaders and communities.  The bullying school officials see is only the tip of the iceberg and only a small part of serious and escalating challenges.   Lessons learned clearly show that most shipwrecks occur because the ship’s captain can only see the tip of the iceberg and not the entire iceberg.  School and community leaders must realize they are the ship captains and bullying can lead to: Loneliness Low Self-Esteem Depression Anxiety Suicide Aggression Weapons Violence Revenge Crime Vandalism Sexting Alcohol/Drug Abuse Declining GradesRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, School Safety, Workplace Violence

New data released this week revealed: 17 percent of American students report being bullied 2-3 times a month or more within a school semester. Over 9% of girls and 14% of boys just watch their fellow classmates get bullied. Over 30% of girls and 22% of boys think they ought to help the bullied students, but don’t do anything about it. 80% of bullying is witnessed; but only 10% of witnesses/bystanders report incidents. Why are bystanders not reporting incidents? There are many reasons and some of the most common include: Some feel threatened or intimidated when reporting a bully or suspicious incident. Some do notRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Incident Reporting, Risk Management, School Safety

  Do you know what the legal definition of “deliberate indifference” is? The conscious or reckless disregard for the consequences of one’s acts or omissions. If you are a school leader, school board member or community leader, you might do a quick web search using the words below:                 deliberate indifference lawsuit school 2010 Over 8,000 results came up from my search and many of the results were related to lawsuits being brought against schools and universities under violation of Title IX.  I heard the term “deliberate indifference” over the weekend when one of the national news channels did a bullying feature on a schoolRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Emergency Management, Incident Reporting, Risk Management, School Safety

  Did you see the story from the San Jose International Airport this past weekend? Just before 3pm on Saturday, an SUV pulled up to the arrival curb outside Terminal A at Mineta San Jose International Airport.  Two men dressed in black got out of the SUV and approached the information desk to inquire about flight 1205 from Dallas.  Both men carried assault rifles that were strapped across their chests and they had handguns in their holsters. One of the volunteers politely asked if they were one of those people on planes that look for terrorists…one of the men simply answered no. The volunteers commentedRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Emergency Management, Incident Reporting, School Safety

  I met some really outstanding people this month while presenting at the NASRO national conference and I deeply appreciate how school resource officers (SROs) and school security officers (SSOs) are striving to make a difference with students and with schools. Before and after my presentations I had some interesting conversations with several SROs from schools all across the U.S.    One of the SROs I spoke brought up an ongoing challenge with cameras.  He would like to replace outdated analog cameras that do not give him the clarity he needs to recognize and identify people.  He also wants to add more cameras for better coverageRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Human Resources, Risk Management, School Safety, Workplace Violence

  In my previous blog I suggested that building a successful preparedness campaign is like building a skyscraper…and in some cases it seems like building a skyscraper may actually be easier than building a successful campus-wide or organization-wide preparedness effort. I mentioned that building a skyscraper and building a campus-wide or organization-wide preparedness effort have a lot in common and one of those common items is blueprints. Blueprints can be a technical drawing, a mechanical drawing, an architectural plan, a model, a prototype, a detailed plan of action and etc.  Blueprints can also include programs, policies, procedures, processes, guidelines, checklists and etc. But blueprints areRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Emergency Management, Risk Management, School Safety, Workplace Violence

  I attended the Virginia Governor’s Campus Preparedness conference last week and had an interesting discussion with one of the attendees.  We were talking about how building preparedness across an organization or an entire campus is becoming more complex and more difficult due to escalating challenges, regulations, obligations, liabilities and much more. As our discussion continued, we started talking about how important tools can be when building campus-wide preparedness programs.   In reference to whether tools can make a difference, I offered the following analogy: Could a skyscraper be built using a hammer, a saw and some nails? The attendee responded quickly, yes the skyscraper couldRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Emergency Management, School Safety

  While tragic incidents like Columbine and Virginia Tech have created an increased awareness of campus safety and security, most college students reveal they still feel fairly safe on campus.  A recent study by three Southern Illinois University scholars has revealed most students are not particularly worried about encountering an active shooter on campus. The survey of more than 5000 students discusses attitudes towards on-campus crime, perceptions of risk and safety, personal experiences and understanding of campus safety measures. What was perhaps most interesting  about the report was the recommendations by the students to reinforce public safety training and communicate emergency procedures with students, facultyRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Emergency Management, Human Resources, Incident Reporting, Risk Management, School Safety

  Just recently, I had the honor of presenting at the EduComm 2010 conference in Las Vegas. The title of my presentation was ‘Connecting the Dots to Improve Campus Safety’ and was selected as a featured presentation. Presenting at conferences is definitely one of my favorite things to do. I get to share ideas, successes and lessons learned with other people who are coming from many different locations and I have the unique opportunity to ask questions and learn what challenges other people face. During my presentation I asked the following questions:   How many of your organizations have a Crisis Management Plan? (Everyone raisedRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Emergency Management, Incident Reporting, Risk Management, School Safety, Workplace Violence

  A recent report from the University of Maryland’s National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) has revealed that since 1995, a much higher percentage (33%) of terrorist attacks in the United States were conducted by unaffiliated individuals, rather than by organized groups. From the Oklahoma City bombing to more recent attacks like Virginia Tech, Fort Hood, and the University of Alabama, another commonality has also been revealed; in 80% of the incidents, red flags and warning signs exist, but are often not identified. There are many reasons red flags go unreported.  Victims or bystanders may fear retaliation or theyRead More →