There is nothing more important than student safety. To make it more convenient for your staff, students and community to securely report safety concerns, we created the Stay Safe. Speak Up! mobile app. Free to download on iOS and Android for PublicSchoolWORKS StudentWatch customers, the app is part of the PublicSchoolWORKS Stay Safe. Speak Up! […]
READ MORE >>During 2018, school safety was one of the biggest topics in the education AND mainstream media. So many articles covered how school districts were spending funding to help secure their schools. This ranged from increased active shooter training for staff to security cameras and more obscure safety measures such as bulletproof whiteboards. Take a look […]
READ MORE >>News headlines in both local and national outlets are continuously highlighting districts purchasing physical security measures, especially the use of security cameras. While administrators and law enforcement may see the benefit of installing cameras throughout and around school buildings, what are students’ perceptions of security cameras? The Journal of Adolescent Health published a report summarizing […]
READ MORE >>Bullying prevention research is a growing field of study and researchers are making strides in trying to understand the complexities and effects of bullying. We compiled and summarized recent research on the topic. “National student survey shows bullying is on the rise over the last three years, particularly among students of color in majority white […]
READ MORE >>So often school safety is focused on initiatives that help keep students and staff safe inside the school building or on district property, but what about on school buses? Riding the bus is how many students start and end their day, making it a crucial safety touchpoint. To learn what safety factors districts should consider […]
READ MORE >>Suicide does not discriminate. It can affect everyone despite their gender, age or ethnicity – including your students. September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month and Monday, September 10th is World Suicide Prevention Day– both are all about helping communities understand suicide, remove the stigma related to suicide and mental health, and provide those in […]
READ MORE >>In honor of National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, the September issue of School Business Affairs focuses on mental health support. Tom Strasburger and Paul Daniels, the Director of Secondary Curriculum at Milford Exempted Village Schools in Milford, OH authored an article titled “Supporting More than the Academics: The Age of Mental Health Support.” The article […]
READ MORE >>Just two weeks after the Parkland school shooting, The New York Times published an article profiling how the threat of school violence, specifically school shootings, has turned school security into a booming business. However, several school security industry members are quoted throughout the article stating there is very little guidance on which technologies and processes […]
READ MORE >>All too often headline news covers families suing school districts after their children commit suicide to try to cope with bullying. This story from late 2017 highlights a family’s demands for better bullying prevention programs nationwide. Rosalie “Rosie” Avila was 13 years-old this past November when she hanged herself after months of alleged bullying at […]
READ MORE >>It is well known bullying can lead to mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, changes to sleep and eating patterns, alcohol and drug abuse, and deviant behavior – and these issues may persist into adulthood. However, much of the bullying research available today is conducted over short periods of time, and there isn’t […]
READ MORE >>Leading up to October, many education reporters, publications and blogs have focused on how common bullying and cyberbullying are in our schools (you can see statistics from PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center and the Cyberbullying Research Center here and here). But what are schools doing to prevent it? According to StopBullying.gov, all 50 states have […]
READ MORE >>A study published in the June issue of School Psychology Quarterly calculated the financial cost bullying has on school districts. The study, which is the “first to count the direct losses caused by bullying-related student absences” according to an article in The Sacramento Bee, found that bullying costs California school districts more than $276 million […]
READ MORE >>Cybersecurity expert and advocate Reginald Corbitt recently authored an opinion piece in eSchool News to examine the root cause of cyberbullying. In his article, which you can read in its entirety here, he argues that many parents and educators alike believe curbing cyberbullying is as easy as limiting students’ access to technology. However, Corbitt references […]
READ MORE >>The Washington Post reported that effective January 1, 2017 the Missouri law, which previously defined harassment in six different ways, will now broadly define harassment as any act that “causes emotional distress.” The law also elevates harassment from a misdemeanor to a felony offense. “Let me be clear, the consequences of poor choices and bad […]
READ MORE >>Student behavior management and discipline policies have been a major focus of the Department of Education in recent years. In The Atlantic, Education Secretary John King spoke about his own experience with school discipline, as well as the importance of cutting off the school-to-prison pipeline and giving students second chances. He also urged school districts […]
READ MORE >>In collaboration with YouthTruth, the Gay, Lesbian and State Education Network (GLSEN) surveyed more than 1,300 students ages 13 to 18 and more than 1,000 teachers to collect data about instances of biased language and bullying based on race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, body size, gender, religion, ability, economic status and gender expression. GLSEN used the results […]
READ MORE >>Discrimination based on religion and ethnicity has seen a dramatic increase, specifically in the last year. According to a recent Huffington Post article, this is due to the recent terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, as well as the media’s coverage of the election. A report published by the Georgetown University’s Bridge Initiative found […]
READ MORE >>According to a recent NPR Education article, one in five children in the U.S. suffers from a mental health condition and nearly 80 percent of those children do not receive the help they need. It is a known fact that there is a link between bullying and mental health issues such as depression and even […]
READ MORE >>How prevalent is bullying in schools? According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 22 percent of students between 12–18 years old reported being bullied at school in 2013. Of those students, more than half reported being made fun of, called names, or insulted half reported being the subject of rumors 20 percent reported […]
READ MORE >>Lunchtime can be a rough time for students. If a student is new to a school or does not have friends in their lunch period, they may be at a loss for where to sit and oftentimes students don’t readily invite others to sit with them. To help students overcome this awkward situation and help […]
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