K-12 schools, along with colleges and universities, have become increasingly popular targets for active shooters in recent years, and maintenance and engineering managers have been drawn into increasingly tense meetings and conversations about ways to enhance facility security to deter these tragic events from occurring.
Now the federal government is offering a resource designed to supplement these efforts with guidance to help staff, students and other bystanders report early signs of trouble.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) recently released the K-12 Bystander Reporting Toolkit, a new resource to K-12 schools in strengthening school safety reporting programs and encouraging bystander reporting among students and the broader school community.
The toolkit offers strategies and guidance K-12 schools, and school districts can use to implement and enhance safety reporting programs and create a school environment where students are more willing and able to report concerns for the wellness and safety of themselves or others. It is designed to help school leaders create tailored, customized approaches to security that meet the needs of their unique communities.
The toolkit emphasizes five key takeaways for schools to consider as part of their safety reporting efforts:
Dan Hounsell is senior editor of the facilities market. He has more than 30 years of experience writing about facilities maintenance, engineering and management.
