The Trump Administration launched a new website called Schoolsafety.gov, which is a resource for kindergarten through grade 12 administrators, educators, parents, and law enforcement to prepare for various threats to safety and security.
“School safety is the number one priority of parents across the country, which is why the President directed DHS and other federal agencies to form a taskforce and provide schools, teachers, parents, and law enforcement with resources to identify, prepare for, respond to, and mitigate threats,” Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said. “The Department provided expertise and resources on a range of school safety issues including threat assessments, physical security, emergency planning, and trainings and exercises designed to help schools and local law enforcement prepare for incidents. With these resources, schools and law enforcement will be better equipped to handle a crisis.”
The SchoolSafety.gov website includes a wide array of resources and best practices to promote vigilance and build capacity to respond to incidents. Specifically, it consists of a School Safety Readiness Tool, an assessment that assists users in evaluating their respective school’s safety posture across ten foundational elements of school safety. After finishing the assessment, users are provided an action plan. It also includes a Secure Information Sharing Platform for designated school personnel to share school safety ideas, practices, plans, and tactics in a protected environment.
“Every child should feel safe at school, and every parent should feel their child is safe each day, too,” HHS Secretary Alex Azar said. “SchoolSafety.gov will help equip schools with the tools they need to create safe, healthy environments, including resources for how to provide mental health services in schools. This new one-stop-shop complements the evidence-based technical assistance HHS provides to local communities around mental health treatment, and we hope to see more and more schools explore these opportunities.”
President Trump established the Federal Commission on School Safety in 2018 to review safety practices and recommend best practices to keep students safe.
“All students deserve a safe learning environment, and the Federal School Safety Clearinghouse is an essential resource for information and best practices,” U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, chair of the Federal Commission on School Safety, said. “Because every school community has its own unique needs, SchoolSafety.gov equips decision-makers with resources for developing, customizing, and implementing actionable school safety plans.”