Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law Friday legislation allowing school employees to be armed in schools. State legislators previously approved HB 1202/SB 1321 Tuesday by a vote of 68-28, authorizing faculty or staff to carry a concealed handgun in school buildings or on school grounds. Related: Iowa Governor Signs Bill to Arm School Staff “I think we need to be really clear about what the law does -– districts have the right to choose,” Lee told WSMV during a news conference Thursday after the General Assembly’s legislative session. “What’s important to me is that we give districts ..read more

Registration is now open for Campus Safety Conference (CSC) at EDspaces, happening November 12-14, 2024, in Houston, Texas, at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Related: Highlights from the 2023 Campus Safety Conference at EDspaces Now in its third year, this co-located event offers the content Campus Safety Conference attendees have come to expect and love and free access to EDspaces sessions. It opens the door to more resources for school and college administrators, campus security executives, law enforcement, and emergency management professionals by providing new insights into arch ..read more

WASHINGTON, DC —ZeroNow today announced the launch of The Path to Safer Schools, a holistic seven-step interactive guide to making schools safer. ZeroNow is a nonprofit organization of school safety experts dedicated to bringing the number of violent incidents in schools to zero. “School Administrators are faced with the daunting task of assembling safety measures without a clear picture to serve as a guide— akin to assembling a puzzle without the top with a picture on the box.” said Ara Bagdasarian, Co-Founder of ZeroNow. “The Path to Safer Schools offers that missing image, giving a cl ..read more

Quality school districts and healthcare facilities provide important contributions that improve the lives of people in their communities daily. While both of these industries share various commonalities, a daily concern for both healthcare workers and educators is their physical safety. This is a challenge that leaders and decision-makers in both fields must address. In the last year, 81.6% of nurses said they have experienced a workplace violence incident. Simultaneously, school shootings reached a record high of 308 during the 2022-2023 school year, and behavioral incidents involving violen ..read more

Much of today’s focus regarding K-12 school safety and security is on emergency response. Various stakeholders, including district leaders, parents, and school boards, want to know if a school is prepared to respond to an incident, particularly those involving violence. However, prevention should be at the forefront of the rhetoric and school safety plans, and behavioral threat assessments play a pivotal role. The overall threat landscape has drastically changed in recent years. During the pandemic, the United States saw a significant uptick in homicides, shootings, and aggravated assaults. W ..read more

In today’s world, ensuring the safety and security of our educational institutions has become a paramount concern. With the increasing statistics in emergency responses and potential threats, schools and public safety organizations continuously seek innovative solutions to enhance their preparedness and response capabilities. Digital Twin Imaging (DTI), an innovative technology company, aims to create a lasting change in the approach to security and situational awareness. Related: 6 Tips for Rookie Campus Crisis Management and Emergency Response Pros DTI specializes in creating highly detai ..read more

Nearly one in four public school teachers experienced a gun-related lockdown last school year, according to a new survey conducted by the Pew Research Center. Related: 804 People Have Been Killed by Guns at U.S. Schools Researchers asked K-12 public school teachers about their experiences with lockdowns and fears surrounding gun violence in schools. About a quarter (23%) said they experienced a lockdown during the 2022-2023 school year due to a gun or suspicion of a gun in their school. Some 8% said it happened more than once in their school. High school teachers were most likely to experie ..read more

Bomb threats have become increasingly prevalent nationwide, affecting various sectors such as government facilities, schools, and universities. High-profile establishments are often the primary targets. Data spanning several decades indicates that the majority of threats –approximately 95% — are hoaxes aimed at disrupting normal operations, instilling public fear, and causing concern. Despite this, businesses must treat every threat seriously due to potential risks, including the possibility of threats being used to exploit vulnerabilities during evacuations. Related: School Swatting Threat ..read more

CENTEGIX® is the industry leader in wearable safety technology for all types of workplaces, from elementary schools to hospitals. Its cloud-based CENTEGIX Safety Platform™ initiates the fastest response time for emergencies — from the every day to the extreme — anywhere on campus. Leaders nationwide trust CENTEGIX’s innovative safety solutions to empower and protect people each day. As an industry leader in the safety space, CENTEGIX is proud to sponsor the 2024 Response Accelerator Awards. Because every second matters in an emergency, the Response Accelerator Awards recognize organizations t ..read more

Note: The views expressed by guest bloggers and contributors are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, Campus Safety. Education has historically been a difficult and demanding profession where people are overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated. Arguably, leading in a classroom or education setting has never been more challenging than it is right now. Today’s teachers face unprecedented challenges that amplify these realities, including issues around school funding, school safety, teacher recruitment, pay, retention, and studen ..read more