At IDEA Public Schools, one of our biggest priorities is ensuring our scholars are in the best, high-quality learning environment possible. Ensuring our scholars are in a safe space where they learn and thrive plays a big part in that.
Across the country, schools have seen an increase in incidents involving students making threats of violence. At IDEA, we take every potential threat seriously and work closely with local law enforcement to investigate and address these situations. In every case, our law enforcement partners have acted quickly and thoroughly as they work to confirm if threats are credible.
At IDEA, the safety and well-being of our students and staff are our top priorities. We follow the legal and disciplinary guidelines outlined in our Student Code of Conduct, which includes a zero-tolerance policy for threats of violence. Any threats, regardless of intent, are treated as serious offenses and may result in disciplinary action, including involvement from law enforcement.
Throughout the past few years, we have developed a comprehensive program to ensure our campuses remain a safe learning environment for all of our scholars. On our campuses, we have multidisciplinary site-based emergency response teams (the Campus Crisis Team) who are trained in prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, and recovery to ensure our students and staff are safe before, during, and after an emergency.
As part of this plan, we are committed to taking these steps:
- We take all reports of threats seriously.
- We work closely with local authorities.
- We keep families informed.
- We commit towards continuously evaluating and improving safety measures.
- We provide comprehensive training for school staff covering emergency response procedures, threat assessment, conflict resolution, and recognizing signs of distress or potential violence.
In addition to our safety plan, we have at least one-armed peace officer, resource officer, or commissioned peace officer employed during regular school hours at each campus.
How to submit a report
It is important that if you, or your scholar, come across something concerning the safety of our campuses, students, and Team and Family, you report it. Whether the suspected threat comes from campus directly or via social media, regardless, it is crucial to ensure its reported. Here are the online platforms for submitting anonymous reports.
- Texas: iWatchTexas
- Louisiana: SafeSchoolsLouisiana
- Florida: FortifyFL
Together, we can all do our part in ensuring our campuses continue to be the best, and safest places, to learn and grow. For more information on school safety, check out the links below.
Talking To Kids About School Safety | Mental Health America
How To Talk To Kids About School Safety | HuffPost Life
10 Things You Can Do to Prevent Violence in Your School Community
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