How is Colorado working to improve school safety?

Recent incidents of gun violence in Colorado have once again called into light the need for a more comprehensive approach to school safety. By creating systems in our schools that address the root causes of violence, we can ultimately improve the long-term safety and social-emotional well-being of our students and teachers.    

Episode 9 of The West Steps explores school safety with Dr. Beverly Kingston, Director and Senior Research Associate at the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence at University of Colorado Boulder; and Leslie Colwell, our Vice President of Youth Success Initiatives. Our guests detail effective strategies for building safer schools, share policy success and current research moving this work forward, and describe steps we can take to prevent violence in schools. They also emphasize the need to bring many perspectives to the table when it comes to making decisions about improving school climate. As researchers, advocates, and policymakers continue their work on school safety, it is critical that young people's voices inform their decision-making to create lasting solutions that best serve our communities.    

Resources  

• Kidsflash blog [Subscribe] 
• Safe2Tell, 24/7 anonymous hotline to report safety concerns [Visit Safe2Tell] 
• Children’s Campaign school climate policy work [Learn more]  
• Averting Targeted School Violence: A U.S Secret Service Analysis of Plots against Schools [Read the report] 
• Safe Communities Safe Schools Model [Read more]