Safe Schools Act Of 1994: Policy Analysis

The use of police in schools has been on the increase since the shootings at Columbine High school in 1999. However, over the last 10-12 years the increase is due mainly to available government funding. These “Special Police” are now called “School Resource Officers” (SROs). While the proponents of the SRO program believe that the presence of a Police officer represents all that is right and moral and what our children should aspire to be.

While researching School Resource officers or law enforcement officers in schools it has been discovered that the research is on the effectiveness of SRO’s is mixed or limited on keeping schools safe (Justice Policy Institute, 2011). There has also been research that was conducted in the last few years that concluded that the safety of schools can be improved without the help of SRO’s and or Law Enforcement’s approach on discipline (Justice Policy Institute, 2011). While reviewing the research of Dewey Correll at the University of Virginia , he suggested that when using highly structured and defined rules that are created to be strict and fairly enforced, while having the support of adults, SRO’s are not necessary

School should be a place of peace and opportunity, but gaps in the system of gun control threatens the safety of faculty and students. School shootings have killed a total of 297 lives, young and old (Slate Magazine). Gun control has been a continuous nationwide debate for many years. It seems that no one wants to take a stance against guns unless they are personally affected. In order to take control of the matter and prevent more incidents from continuing schools need to change. To achieve a safe environment in schools need to educate faculty, safe and students, heighten security, and assess mental health issues.

After reading this week’s readings I noticed that most of the external causes mentioned in the textbook such as gangs and drug abuse that lead to participation in juvenile delinquency are usually connected or take place at school, therefore in my opinion I believe that school interactions presents the biggest risk for juveniles and is most likely to lead them to participate in delinquency. One of the main issues associated with school interactions is that schools are not a safe place anymore especially in lower class communities with a high crime rate, just like the textbook explained that schools are more like a replica of their community meaning that if there are a lots of crimes and drug abuse in a community, then the school most likely will suffer this issues with students within the school property and some students will feel as unsafe as they feel in their communities which in turn can lead some students to carry weapons

There is a grave national crisis occurring all across the nation. Children everywhere are committing acts of hostility in their schools. Schools are no longer a safe haven for children but are now considered war zones where victims are abundant and violence is the enemy. Fifty-seven percent of public elementary and secondary school principals reported that one or more incidents of crime or violence occurred in their schools and were reported to law enforcement officials. Ten percent of all public schools experienced one or more serious violent crimes. Some 6,093 students were expelled during the 1996-1997 academic school year for bringing firearms or explosives to school.

After the Sandy Hook, there were countless ways for students to be safe at school. In Preparing for the Unthinkable: School Safety after Sandy Hook news article, Vicki Bauman said, “ Instead of gates, guns, and metal detectors, let’s invest in the things we know will make us safer: counselors, health care, teaching positive behavior, and making sure we have services to reach out to disconnected youth and pull them back on track.” Therefore, violence is not the answer to any question or issue. The community and school system should take a stand and get the necessities that the schools need to have a safe environment for the students and faculty and staff. The school can invest in law enforcement. The law enforcement will be able to conduct a consistent search through a metal detector. The law enforcement will help the students to avoid bringing prohibited weapons to school as well as, there to protect the school.

The intention of this paper is to look at and present some issues and strategies that members of a school community think about when trying to create safer schools. Particularly when addressing an active shooter in a school setting. A major issue to consider when trying to keep all schools safe, is the simple fact that no two schools are the same. Understanding this can lead us to the conclusion that it is impossible to have one global plan or program that can be 100% effective in all schools. “Violence prevention programs work best when they incorporate multiple strategies and address the full range of possible acts of violence in schools. For any set of policies to work, it must be established and

Schools need to maintain a disciplined and safe learning environment. There are many disciplinary actions that are in use today and although some can disagree about the amount of discipline that is best for maturing children, it is reasonable to be in agreement that a positive learning environment begins with physical and emotional safety. School safety includes a broad range of matters, including, fighting, bullying, drugs, alcohol, weapons, and etc. Many schools use varying methods in an effort to maintain school safety. Some schools limit school access and require all visitors to sign in. Physical surveillance is another common method of addressing school safety issues along with use of staff and student identification. Among all these

Safety is a tremendous issue on college campuses, and additional procedures need to be taken to prevent crimes from happening. When walking onto a college campus as a young adult, people get a rush of the unknown. The unknown could be going to college parties and late night study groups. College should be like any high school or elementary school and have better security measures to protect their students. The reasons we need these extra steps are to prevent violence, give students a sense of security, and monitor visitors on campus.

In the aftermath of several highly publicized incidents of school violence, public school officials have increasingly turned to intense surveillance methods to promote school safety. This can be shown through such as security cameras, physical surveillance, RFID chipping, internet security, and metal detectors. For example, with regards to school shootings such as the one at Columbine High School in 1999 – that left deep scares within our nation, more than fifty percent of parents [with children] in grades K-12 and seventy-five percent of

With millions of dollars being spent on measures to fight weapons and drugs in schools, little reason for optimism exists due to the track record of these methods and programs. Drugs and problems still continue to be a serious problem for our youth. For example, despite spending more than 20 million dollars on the installation of metal detectors at public schools in New York City, weapons continue to be a serious problem. In order for us to have safe schools, we need to bridge the gap between

Throughout the 1990s crime and violence within schools had significantly increased. The increasing presence of school shootings became a great cause for concern for parents, students, and school staff. To respond to this significantly increasing problem within schools, local police departments partnered with schools to implement school resource officers onto campuses to promote safety within schools. The research question ‘How does the presence of security enforcement in schools affect students involvement in crime and violence within schools’ will determine the overall effect school resource officers have within schools. It will determine how their presence and increase security measures within schools truly impact students.

School violence, in recent history, seems to have taken the United States by storm. Be it a shooting, such as the Columbine High School shooting in 1999, the inappropriate relationships between teacher and student, such as Stephanie Figueroa whom initiated one such relationship with her 11-year-old karate student, or the multiple fights we see on social media that take place in schools. With each passing week, we see a new story that falls in one of these categories. Today, we look at the types of, causes of and how to prevent violence in what should be a safe place and second home for our youth.

With the many recent tragic school shootings, people are asking questions regarding if their children are under enough protection while they are at school. One of the biggest debate questions is: should schools have armed guards at the front entrance? This question has been answered by many people by giving their specific opinion. The question of armed guards in front of school has also been addressed on talk shows and to political leaders for their opinion. The answers that are given are either for having armed guards, or against armed guards standing in front of schools. Armed guard should not be posted at schools because it increases uncertainty and risk of student safety.

Responding to School Violence. NASSP Bulletin, Mar, v84 n614 p32-45 Murphy, J., Weil, M., Hallinger, R., dan Mitman, A. (1985). School effectiveness: a conceptual framework. The Educational Forum, 49(3), 361-374.