Physical Environment Safety
Myths; Realities of Search and Rescue (SAR) Dogs & Their Handlers – Interview with Jennifer Fritton | SDP 6
I deem that this post will inform school administrators, staff, parents and families as what to expect in the event that search and rescue (SAR) dogs are involved in a search for a lost child. This blog post was developed, in large part, from an interview I conducted on December 14, 2016 with SAR dog handler Jennifer…
Read MoreThe Biggest Safety Gap in Most Professional Sports Stadiums & Arenas: Scott Meyers Interview – SDP#4
While user-friendly icon-based mobile app managed systems have become common at the professional and college levels, there is very little penetration into K-12 settings, even for districts with 70 or more schools!
Read MoreProtecting Soft Targets – My Thoughts about the 2005 Study of Chula Vista High School (San Diego)
“Establishing a containment perimeter while a SWAT team is assembled to conduct a slow methodical building to building search is an obsolete procedure.” Crockett, et. al., 2005. On December 7, 2005, researchers conducted a safety analysis of a high school in San Diego. The study team, which included a Microsoft employee, offered many practical sense crisis…
Read MoreHarrisburg Shooting Reflection Delivers Conflicting Messages
By Erin Mairose • Aug 5, 2016 at http://listen.sdpb.org/post/school-administrators-reflect-harrisburg-shooting#stream/0 (this article refers to an incident that occurred in 2015) “After a student shot Principal Kevin Lein in his office, Assistant Principal Ryan Rollinger tackled the student while waiting for law enforcement. Rollinger says school administrators are the people who teach school drills. But it’s important for administrators…
Read MoreOrlando Massacre Might Fuel Decision Inertia
Decision Inertia, in short, is the tendency to continue to expand choices until the number of options is overwhelming and leads to indecision or poor decisions. Knowing what has been posted by the media about the Orlando massacre, people fleeing the club was a life-preserving measure, the “gut feeling” or as author Brian Peters would…
Read MoreWhy We Should Consider the Hawthorne Effect Before We Decide to Fortify the Physical School Environment
What is often overlooked, or greatly under-estimated, when planning to fortify the physical environment of a school is the impact those changes will have upon students – and ultimately student learning and student performance. As communities demand steel doors and fewer windows in schools it is important to weigh those changes against the potential impact on students.…
Read MoreEXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: A 40-Year Veteran of the Telecom Industry and Crisis Communications Profession Offers His Opinions About Analog Versus Digital 2-Way Radios Relative to School Security
Like many school districts, the district I work for is in the process of upgrading its 2-way radio communications system in both an effort to make communications more efficient and to also enhance school safety. I’ve had a substantial role in that process and admit that while I have learned much, I still have much…
Read MoreWhat’s My Safety Priority – Radio Communications or Video Surveillance?
There’s a debate brewing in the school safety world as radio communications is pitted against video surveillance for a northern notch on the priority ladder. Here’s my two cents on this discussion. Let’s begin with an examination of the everyday use of radio communications and video surveillance. Everyday Use – Radio Communications Playground supervision. Custodians (talk group). Special education…
Read MoreWhat Titanic and Britannic Can Teach Us About School Safety
We can learn a lot about school safety from studying the Titanic and its sister the Britannic. The rumble is persistent – and at times even deafening – as the public seeks to protect school children via impenetrable doors, bullet-proof glass, cameras and armed guards. While this structural-functional perspective isn’t wrong, it is only one perspective. …
Read MoreMass Shooting Incident Symposium – Key Points to Consider
The DeForest (WI) Police Department made me a special non-law enforcement guest of the Mass Shooting Incident Symposium held at the Schauer Performing Arts Center in Hartford, Wisconsin on March 4, 2013. This exemplary event, designed for law enforcement, entailed brilliant studies of four mass shootings with attention to efficient incident and post-incident responses. Presenters: Major Kevin…
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