Security Services ESP — 
Building a Quality Workforce

Violence and Crisis in Schools

Not Just the "Usual Suspects" Anymore

Public schools are one of the best examples of the tendency for social institutions to mirror the overall culture or community in which they exist. Whatever is "happening" in the community is probably "happening" in the public school. If the community is awash in drugs and substance abuse, for example, so is the public school.

Violence comes to school every single morning, and has done so in one form or another since the first "one room school house." Bullying and bigotry are as old as humanity. The fact of violence has not changed. The amount, intensity, level, and kind of violence, however, is very different now than it was just five years ago.

The "usual suspects" before September 11th were substance abuse, hate-motivated behavior, gang activity, weapons violence, student-on-student violence, and school property vandalism and theft. These issues continue to challenge Security Services ESP. The new challenges, however, are much more virulent and complex. And according to a Security Services ESP from Flint, Michigan, "Kids today are Dangerous! They used to be just Bad!"

Just prior to September 11th, Americans were shaken to their core by a series of school shootings, culminating in the most infamous and awful, Columbine in Colorado. School "safety" would never be the same. Schools scrambled to develop and implement security plans in the event of a student or intruder violent incident, and Security Services ESP became the first line of defense. In an instant, security services in schools went from deterring vandalism of lockers to surveillance cameras, weapons searches, locked doors and complete campus "lock downs."

As if this intensification for Security Services ESP weren't difficult enough, the country awoke on September 11, 2001, to a new kind of terror that instantly became a part of the overall security and safety challenge in American public schools.

Security Services ESP now must think about bombs, weapons of mass destruction, chemical and biological weapons, and unconventional weapon delivery systems — vehicles, planes, trains. Interaction among Security Services ESP and many outside law enforcement agencies, including local and state police, Federal and State Bureaus of Investigation, and the Federal Immigration Service, is no longer unusual. Other agencies that had only infrequent contact with public schools in the past, such as state and federal health and human services agencies, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Centers for Disease Control, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, are now regular partners with school security employees.

State officials and school superintendents met yesterday to discuss preparations for protecting students as part of New Jersey's Homeland Security effort. Gov. James McGreevey and State Police, health and education officials told the superintendents to make certain that schools are ready to deal with everything from student violence to SARs to terrorist attacks. According to the Governor, public schools have been identified by the Homeland Security Department as "part of the critical infrastructure that must be made safe from possible terror." Trenton Times, April 20, 2003.

In Hamilton Township, NJ, site of the main Trenton, NJ, Post Office, the district's 13,000 students are no longer in danger of coming in contact with anthrax-tainted mail. In a Trenton Times article, School Superintendent Neil Bencivengo said that before a ruling on October 16, 2001, students helped with the mail. "Now we only have security employees in the district opening mail, and they are using gloves and masks," he said. Under school district emergency procedures, if a piece of mail appears suspicious, a security supervisor and police are notified. With advice and assistance from the Centers for Disease Control, the schools are adding measures to their crisis management plans that address biohazardous materials.

The Montgomery County, Maryland, public school system has seen more than its share of violence and terror. The school family suffered losses from the terrorist attack on the Pentagon on 9-11. The post office was affected by the anthrax scare, and the school district and community were at the center of the sniper attacks in 2002. As a result, their School District Security and Crisis/Emergency Plan now includes "code blue lock-downs," emergency teams, and team drills once a month. The drills and teams coordinate with the police and fire departments, and they test their plan often. The Superintendent believes that "mental health is a very important component of children and parents feeling safe. So we have a plan, we practice the plan often, and we spend time improving the plan."

"Shelter in place" is also becoming a component of many school district crisis/emergency plans. Students and staff are "locked down" where they are on the school campus, and remain there for hours and even days, depending on the nature of the emergency. The shelter is equipped with everything they will need: food, water, sanitary supplies, communication equipment, blankets, first aid, medical provisions, and so forth. In some Arizona schools, the lock down areas include computer links to police departments and fire stations. Security Services ESP are part of the emergency teams responsible for practice and drills and believe that parental confidence in the school crisis/emergency plan helps them to reassure their kids. With practice, students are generally less frightened and better prepared.

Security Services ESP must be included in all phases of school safety and security planning, from the basic mission statement of the district all the way to the most complex Homeland Security Plan. Every school administrator in the country must recognize how essential Security Services ESP are to creating viable emergency plans.

To Section 4: The Training and Equipment Vacuum