School Safety Advocacy Council Expands Training Opportunities

• NCJ Number: 241375
• Author(s): Becky Lewis
• Date Published: February 2013
• Length: 0 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2010-MU-MU-K020
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Issue Overview

Annotation

This article, part of the special issue of TECHBeat, posted on the JUSTNET.org Web site, discusses new training opportunities available from the School Safety Advocacy Council.

Abstract

Following the murders at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, in December of 2012, new efforts are being focused on the issue of school safety and how to keep children and adults safe in school settings. This article, "School Safety Advocacy Council Expands Training Opportunities," is part of the special issue of TECHBeat posted on the JUSTNET.org Web site. The article discusses new training opportunities available from the School Safety Advocacy Council (SSAC) that were developed in response to the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School. In addition to its regular courses, the Council developed the Law Enforcement Educational Presence (LEEP), a 2-day School Safety Certification Course for Patrol and Reserve Officers. LEEP promotes the idea that schools can have an office in their buildings designated specifically for use by officers on patrol or officers from specialized units who work out of that office on a part-time basis. This allows the officers to get to know the students, administrators, and other staff members, as well as the layout of the school. With this information, officers will be more prepared to handle most emergency situations that could occur at the school. Other courses offered by SSAC include the basic and advanced school resource officer (SRO) certification courses, a course on emergency management response in a school setting, what educators sand SROs should know about gangs, school law and liability, school safety leadership and supervision, and understanding the threat of terrorism in today's schools.