Foundation of school safety rests in creating a culture and climate of safety, says Weiser
Apr. 16, 2019 (AURORA, Colo.) — Today at the Uniting to Prevent School Violence symposium at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced the re-release of the Colorado School Safety Guide to help equip educators and administrators with concrete, actionable, and evidence-based tools to promote safety and prevent violence in schools.
The guide—prepared by the University of Colorado Boulder Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence and the Attorney General’s Office of Community Engagement—covers key, data-driven concepts to make schools safer. These include completing school safety audits and training teachers to recognize the signs of potentially dangerous stress in students.
“School-related violence is a complex problem, and one that demands a comprehensive solution. The Safety Guide is aimed at providing information on best practices and evidence-based programs for promoting safety and preventing violence in Colorado schools. We are committed to following the data, and to giving educators and others valuable tools that work in the real world,” Weiser said in his remarks at the symposium.
The symposium, a collaboration of various departments at the University of Colorado, explored both the lessons learned and challenges to preventing school violence in recognition of the 20th anniversary of the Columbine High School shootings.
In addition to the Safety Guide, the Attorney General highlighted Safe2Tell Colorado as one of the evidence-based violence prevention program that has successfully identified and mitigated threats in schools. Anonymous tips received through Safe2Tell have helped school officials and law enforcement agencies respond to threats, prevent tragedy, and save lives.
In the last school year alone, Safe2Tell received 16,000 tips, 2,786 of which were potential suicide attempts, 1,641 were to report instances of bullying, and 692 of which were planned school attacks. The Attorney General’s Office oversees Safe2Tell, and all Colorado schools participate in the program.
A link to the re-released 2019 Colorado School Safety Guide is available on the Colorado Attorney General website for schools to download and will be sent to all school security directors and superintendents.
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CONTACT
Lawrence Pacheco, Director of Communications
(720) 508-6553 office | (720) 245-4689 cell
Email: Lawrence.pacheco@coag.gov