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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Connect the Dots, Government, School Safety, Security

August was a good month for connecting the dots. 2018 National School Security Roundtable August started with the 2018 National School Security Roundtable in Washington, DC.  The roundtable was hosted by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Academic Engagement and was attended by around 100 pre-qualified attendees. Day 1 of the roundtable started with speakers from DHS (Mr. Frazier) and FEMA (Mr. Long) and then Mr. Ryan Petty spoke about the horrific tragedy that took place in Parkland, FL.  Mr. Petty’s daughter Alaina was one of the 17 shot and killed in the massacre. Mr. Petty shared his heartfelt thoughts as well as whatRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Connect the Dots, Education, First Preventer, Incident Reporting, indicators, Risk Management, School Safety, Security

It’s no secret Security Cameras are on almost every school and organization’s wish list, especially at budget time. In fact, billions of dollars have been invested in Security Cameras and other security products… but questions about whether Security Cameras are the best solution for preventing Active Shooters and other acts of violence are emerging. Recent media stories are questioning the law of diminishing returns and Market Analysts are commenting on how anxiety is bolstering multi-billion-dollar security industry. Jim Dearing, an economist at the market research firm HIS Markit, commented how, “The U.S. spends a lot more per capita on security than any other country,” yetRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Education, First Preventer, First Responder, indicators, Prevention, School Safety, Security

Research reveals the biggest school security and school safety failures, and their common denominators. But do you know what the research says about school safety & school security? Columbine High School (1999) Sandy Hook Elementary (2012) Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (2018) Q: What are the Common Denominators since 1999 (nearly 20 years)?  A: The Pieces of the Puzzle (concerning behaviors, suspicious activities, pre-incident indicators, warning signs, etc.) remain scattered across community members and across the social media community, which is why Prevention fails again and again. Because it is impossible to Prevent everything, School Security and Response solutions are clearly needed, but it’s also clearRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Connect the Dots, Education, Incident Reporting, indicators, Prevention, School Safety

Dear School Administrators, Community Leaders, and Lawmakers: “Every adversity, every failure, every heartbreak, carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.” – Napoleon Hill  Each of you have a huge opportunity as you deal with adversity and as you make choices that students, parents, and others are demanding to fix and stop school violence and to make sure students will #NeverAgain face a tragic shooting attack in their school. The huge opportunity requires a combination of common-sense, evidence-based analysis, and an unbiased willingness to understand what must be done DIFFERENTLY to disrupt evil and stop school violence and tragic shootings.  You essentially haveRead More →

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

[Prevention] Would you prefer to REACT to an attacker at your front door? Or would you prefer to DISRUPT and PREVENT the attacker from getting to your front door? At speaking events, 99.9% of people raise their hand for prevention, but is that where people are putting their energy and budgets? How does an active shooter drill – teaching run, hide, fight – prevent the next shooter? It doesn’t! We’re not saying these drills aren’t important, but how are they preventing future incidents? How does a camera prevent the next shooter/shooting? It doesn’t! A camera has never stopped a gunman. How does a crisis orRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Education, Incident Reporting, Prevention, Rick's Notes, School Safety, Uncategorized, Video

[Student Safety] Are you ready to transform and improve student safety by PREVENTING school shootings and other incidents? Watch this video. If you want to keep the status quo and keep Responding to them…don’t watch this video. Download an updated school shootings chart to compare your school’s security to others who have had incidents, how is your school any different? Warning Signs: awareity.com/warning-signs/ Client Transformations: awareity.com/transformations/ [inf_infusionsoft_inline optin_id=optin_3]Read More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Rick's Notes, School Safety, Security, Video

In the wake of yet another tragic mass shooting at a school, it’s time to respond and ensure student safety with action. This message is for the President, the Governors, the Attorney Generals, the Department of Education, the Department of Safety, Mayors, City Managers, Superintendents, and anyone else who is in a position to take real action to promote real change and real safety by preventing these acts of evil. Apologies are not solutions. Laws are not solutions. Slogans are not solutions. Hashtags are not solutions.  Student safety MUST become a higher priority because students, parents, and schools deserve better than status quo thinking and statusRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Education, School Safety

What is more important and more valuable than a student’s life?  What is more important than an employee’s life? What is more important than any human life? Cameras to record the violence? A PC for every student? A football game? Coffee for Faculty/Staff? Hundreds of other lower priority purchases?  None of these are more important or more valuable than a human life, yet Education Leaders continue to fund hundreds of projects BEFORE funding is invested in proven strategies and tools for saving the lives and saving futures of students and others. How many more lives must be lost and futures ruined before Education Leaders adaptRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Connect the Dots, Education, Legal, Legal Precedent, Prevention, School Safety

Attention: All Higher Education Chancellors, Presidents, Boards, Regents, Vice Presidents, etc. this court decision may be have just set a very important precedent for all Higher Education institutions when it comes to Preventing violence. Tyrell K. Okoro, 23, was awarded $823,869 for non-economic damages and $76,131 for medical expenses by a Baltimore jury on Sept. 7. Okoro’s complaint argued that, the university and its police officers “should have known that its failure to properly address violent crime on its campus had created an environment that would subject its students, including Okoro, to an unreasonable risk that they would become the victim of violent crime.” Okoro’sRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Campus Safety, Connect the Dots, Education, School Safety

This question was the topic of Awareity’s latest Higher Education webinar in August 2016 and part of an ongoing series of webinars focused on mounting challenges in Higher Education. The evidence is alarming and overwhelmingly clear that: Sex assaults are happening on every campus People know about the sexual assaults Lives are being ruined and lost have been lost Reputations of institutions are being seriously damaged Reputations of Administrators are being seriously damaged Lawsuits are expensive and coming from victims and perpetrators Bottom lines are taking BIG hits Federal investigations are targeting 225+ institutions Why are 225+ Higher Education institutions under federal investigations? The evidenceRead More →