January 2019 - Safe and Sound Schools

2018 Year-End Review

Now that the new year has come and gone and students have settled back into their school routine, we’re rewinding the tape–just a bit–to bring you our 2018 year-end review. To those following Safe and Sound Schools, you may have noticed Safe and Sound’s more mainstream presence over the last year. While we’ve been quietly and successfully working around the clock since the loss of our children, 2018 brought our work into the forefront in many ways, offering us the opportunity to work in partnership with national groups like Alice’s Tea Cup, Shake Shack, Kellogg’s, and Door Security & Safety Foundation. It was also the year we launched our inaugural State of School Safety Report. With more than 2,170 media placements in 2018, Safe and Sound Schools is committed to elevating the national school safety conversation and effecting change globally.

During our last quarter, the Safe and Sound team sustained momentum from quarters one, two, and three, and collectively traveled to 16 states and 34 cities, with a mix of local and national engagements. Here’s quick look back at our fourth quarter.

October was the busiest month. Our team of speakers traveled to communities all across the country, while our in-house team focused on spreading our mission virtually, using social media to shed light on topics like Fire Prevention Week, Bullying Prevention Month, and Safe Schools Week.

In November, the Safe and Sound team presented for groups like the New York State PTA and the Maryland Association of School Business Officials. During the Maryland visit, co-founder Michele Gay was awarded the President’s Award for her work in school safety, both nationally and as part of our Safe and Sound Maryland initiative, sponsored by the Building for God Foundation of Maryland. During this month, we also announced the National Summit on School Safety, an intensive and interactive two-day conference focused on the six key areas of comprehensive school safety. Note – this conference is scheduled for March 29-30, 2019 and there is still plenty of time to register!

December marked the 6th anniversary of the Sandy Hook School tragedy. Our team scaled back community visits as the Gay and Parker family focused on remembrances for Josephine Gay and Emilie Parker. To commemorate Joey and Emilie’s lives, Alissa Parker shared a sweet memory highlighting Joey and Emilie’s friendship.

Safe and Sound Schools concluded December with the exciting unveiling of an updated logo and a new website! We also filmed a new educational video about door safety, thanks to the generous support of the Door Security & Safety Foundation, and provided the media with a sneak peek at our new partnership with Bark.

As our team expands, so does our reach. And with every day, our work becomes increasingly important. Thank you to all the donors and supporters who made 2018 such a success.

For a detailed look at our fourth quarter travels and select media engagements, check out the lists below. And to keep up with all things Safe and Sound, make sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Look out for our 2019 first quarter recap in April!

Select Media Engagements and Featured Publications

Fourth Quarter Community Visits

October

Oct. 4, UT – Alissa Parker presents in Lehi for the Utah Association of Secondary Principals, sharing School Safety: A Parent’s Perspective.
Oct. 5, NY – Michele Gay keynotes for the Genesee Valley School Boards Institute in Rochester, New York.
Oct. 8, ID – Frank DeAngelis attends an educational conference in Boise, Colorado.
Oct. 8, PA – Michele Gay presents at the Reading/Berks County School Nurses Association Conference in Reading.
Oct. 9, PA – Michele Gay shares School Safety: A Parent’s Perspective with the Wilkes-Barre Area School District.
Oct. 16, PA – Lisa Hamp presents at Uptown! Performing Arts in Westchester, Pennsylvania.
Oct. 16, MO – Frank DeAngelis presents on workplace violence in St. Louis, Missouri.
Oct. 19, CO – Frank DeAngelis presents for National Council of State Education Attorneys in Denver, Colorado.
Oct. 19, DC – Michele Gay and Lisa Hamp attend the American Institute of Architects Conference for Safe School Design in Washington, DC.
Oct. 21, MA – Natalie Hammond participates in a panel discussion, Gun Violence Prevention and Keeping Our Children Safe, for Common Street Spiritual Center in Natick, Massachusetts.
Oct. 22, NV – Alissa Parker presents Engaging the Community in School Safety: Tools and Ideas for Safer Schools at Nevada Principal’s Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Oct. 23, NY – Michele Gay presents for GST BOCES in Painted Post, New York, focusing on a Parent’s Perspective, Beyond Tragedy, Reunification, and Engaging the Community.
Oct. 23, MI – Frank DeAngelis presents for the International Association of Emergency Managers in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Oct. 23, FL – Alissa Parker shares her personal story of faith, hope, and healing for the Children’s Healing Institute in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Oct. 24, MA – Dan Jewiss presents Tragedy at Sandy Hook School: Law Enforcement’s Perspective for Lee Public Schools in Lee, Massachusetts.
Oct. 24, MA – Micheel Gay presents Tragedy at Sandy Hook School: A Parent’s Perspective for Lee Public Schools in Lee, Massachusetts.
Oct. 24, MA – Natalie Hammond presents Tragedy at Sandy Hook School: A Survivor’s Perspective for Lee Public Schools in Lee, Massachusetts.
Oct. 25, CA – Alissa Parker attends Guidepost Magazine’s Cabinet Gathering in Huntington Beach, California, discussing healing, faith, and her book An Unseen Angel.
Oct. 26, NY – Lisa Hamp presents for the Monroe-Woodbury High School community in Woodbury, New York.
Oct. 28, TX – Frank DeAngelis presents in Humble, Texas.
Oct. 30, PA – Melissa Reeves hold a threat assessment workshop for LLIU13 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Oct. 31, PA – Melissa Reeves holds a threat assessment workshop for LLIU13 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

November

Nov. 1, PA – Jin Kim presents Active Shooter Survival Strategies for PJM Interconnection in Audubon, Pennsylvania.
Nov. 1 – Frank DeAngelis joins Raptor Technologies’ webinar and presents Leadership Lessons from Columbine and Beyond.
Nov. 1, OH – Alissa Parker travels to Sylvania to present School Safety: A Parent’s Perspective for Sylvania Schools.
Nov. 2, TX – Lisa Hamp presents for day-one of the ALERRT Conference in Grapevine, Texas.
Nov. 2, MD – Michele Gay presents a Parent’s Perspective for the Maryland Association of School Business Officials in Annapolis, Maryland. During this visit, Michele was awarded the President’s Award for her work to ensure safe and sound schools.
Nov. 3, MD – Michele Gay presents School Safety: A Parent’s Perspective for the Association of School Business Officials in Linthicum Heights, Maryland.
Nov. 4, TX – Lisa Hamp presents for day-two of the ALERRT Conference in Grapevine, Texas.
Nov. 5, CA – Michele Gay presents for the Gavin de Becker Advanced Threat Assessment Academy in Lake Arrowhead, California.
Nov. 7 , TX – Michele Gay presents Beyond Tragedy: Response and Recovery in a School Based Crisis for Region 7 Education Service Center in Kilgore, Texas.
Nov. 9, Utah – Alissa Parker shares her story of hope and healing for Time Out for Women in St. George, Utah.
Nov. 11, NY – Alissa Parker presents School Safety: A Parent’s Perspective for NYS PTA in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Nov. 13, IL – Frank DeAngelis presents for Juvenile Justice Council Coordinator in Effingham, Illinois.
Nov. 13, TX – Scott Poland presents Youth Suicide Prevention and Threat Assessment for the Midlothian Independent School District, in Midlothian, Texas.
Nov. 14, TX – Frank DeAngelis presents at the Collin County Mental Health Symposium in Plano, Texas.
Nov. 28, DC – Michele Gay presents for the ALEC Policy Summit in Washington, DC.

December

Dec. 3, MD – Michele Gay attends the NASRO Leadership Summit in Baltimore, Maryland.
Dec. 6, MD – Michele Gay visits John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
Dec. 11, PA – Michele Gay presented Beyond Tragedy: Response and Recovery in a School Based Crisis for the Center for Safe Schools in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

January 31, 2019/by safesound

Let’s Open the Conversation about Door Safety

Blog

The most visible tool we have to protect our schools are doors. They are everywhere – on the outside of our buildings at various external entrances, and all throughout a school building. While doors may have originally served as a way to allow people to come and go, or help cut down on distractions outside the classroom, doors now play a key role in helping to keep our schools safe and secure.

However, as we travel the country, working with school communities on safety strategies, we see this visible and symbolic tool frequently misused. Yes, doors are important in securing our buildings and classrooms, but too often, we see schools use locking devices and add-ons that actually put students and teachers at risk, rather than protecting them. Here are the most critical considerations everyone should be aware of:

First, door locks need to be compliant with building codes, fire codes, and the Americans with Disabilities Act to make sure we’re safe from a variety of threats. Many locks we see do not meet these basic safety requirements.
Second, we need door locks to be easy to use for everybody, regardless of age, developmental level, ability, or disability. This means having locks at the right height and easy to operate with one smooth motion. To put it simply, if people have to practice or be trained to secure the door, it’s just not simple enough. History has taught us that people trying to evacuate quickly, especially in groups, can panic and quickly become trapped.
Third, the door has to be lockable from inside, without students or teachers needing to open the door to lock it. No one should have to open the door to secure it when there is a possible threat on the other side.
Lastly – and this is especially difficult for many of us looking for inexpensive, quick door security solutions – it is important to resist the temptation to install door barricade devices in public places, like our schools. While the intention of these additional devices is to give an add a layer of security, they have the potential to enable bullying, harassment, or much worse when added to public spaces.

When secured properly, doors can be an effective barrier against a safety threat outside the school or classroom AND still allow individuals and groups of people to exit safely should their situation change like in a lockdown turned emergency evacuation.

I urge you – for the sake of our students and educators – to become informed about the right way to lock doors. One of Safe and Sound Schools’ partners, the Door Safety and Security Foundation, has been leading the charge on this issue. We are proud to partner with them to make sure schools understand how and why to properly lock school doors.

In fact, with their generous support, we produced a short educational video you can share with your school community. Help us open a conversation about this important issue in school safety today. Check out the Door Security and Safety Foundation, and their “Lock Don’t Block” program by visiting www.lockdontblock.org.

January 22, 2019/by safesound

Connecting With Teens for a Cause

Blog

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of meeting some very special teens who joined us to celebrate our cause during our New Year, New Sound event in NYC. While the event recap does a great job of capturing the essence and excitement of the day, I wanted to share some more personal reflections with you.

Actor Jeremy Ray Taylor and members of the band Chasing da Vinci – Jeddi, Jessi, Josephine and Josiah – were a HUGE part of the success of our event. These five artists traveled all the way from Tennessee to be with us!

Jeremy filmed a PSA calling for students to join our school safety movement, and Chasing da Vinci wrote and performed an original song, “Good Days,” dedicated to Safe and Sound Schools. The music instantly sets an upbeat vibe and the lyrics are powerful!

By participating in New Year, New Sound, Jeremy and Chasing da Vinci shared their passion, generosity, and hope, filling our hearts and energizing our national movement. I was deeply humbled by their presence and how they gave their time and talents to benefit the safety of students everywhere.

So many young people passionate about positive change for school safety came out for the event. Of course, many heard about us through Jeremy and Chasing da Vinci, but I did get the chance to speak with a lot of them. They brought stories from their schools, experiences that they or their friends have encountered, and most importantly, a desire to create a more caring and inclusive community on their own campuses.

Finally, the support from the many companies who made our event possible brought tears to my eyes. Literally. Kellogg’s NYC was a gracious, welcoming host for us. Hipstr brought the whimsy with their fun and interactive photo booth–lots of Instagram moments there! And Rekovr donated the coolest sunglasses (check out our Facebook album to see the most popular styles). Each of these donations, on their own, were generous, but altogether showed a network of amazing people behind our mission.

Though we’re more than five years into building this national movement, we’re really just getting started. We have so much more work to do to ensure “Good Days” ahead for our all students. But as we saw at New Year, New Sound, we are joined with so many smart, caring and fun people! Together, everything is possible. Together, we will continue to grow this national community dedicated to making our schools safe and sound.

Michele Gay, Co-founder of Safe and Sound Schools

January 19, 2019/by safesound

Safe and Sound Schools and Bark Team Up

Press Releases

Safe and Sound Schools and Bark Team Up to Provide Schools With More Comprehensive School Safety Resources

Research-backed educational resources combined with smart monitoring technology helps parents and schools improve safety efforts

Newtown, CT – Jan. 16, 2019 – Safe and Sound Schools, a national school safety non-profit founded by Sandy Hook parents, today announced a new collaboration with Bark, the digital monitoring service for parents and schools. As part of the agreement, Bark will strengthen its offerings for parents and schools with Safe and Sound Schools’ research-backed resources, tools, and programs.

Bark offers monitoring services to help pick up signs of cyberbullying, sexting, suicidal ideation, school shootings, and more, among youth. The free Bark for Schools program monitors school-issued Office 365 and G Suite accounts. Bark also offers a fee-based service for parents for discrete monitoring and alerts of potential threats. By working with Safe and Sound Schools, Bark will enhance its monitoring services with additional resources to help schools and parents prevent, respond to, and recover from safety incidents.

“Teaming up with Safe and Sound Schools is an incredible opportunity to give schools the tools they need to better protect their students, both at home and at school,” said Brian Bason, Bark CEO. “Given the growing number of school shootings and other threats of violence, there’s no better partner to help keep kids as safe as possible.”

The relationship between online activities and in-school behavior intensifies the importance of monitoring services and their role in detecting potential issues in today’s schools and ensuring a safe school climate.

“The more information we have, the better prepared we can be,” said Michele Gay, co-founder and executive director of Safe and Sound Schools. “When schools and parents can tap into the power of a tool like Bark, they can step in earlier, helping to break the chain of causality in potentially violent situations. Combined with our resources and programs, communities can help mitigate safety risks, and better respond to threats, and overall, have a proactive approach to improve school safety.”

As part of its ongoing commitment to school safety and Safe and Sound Schools, Bark continues to offer Bark for Schools for free. In addition, Bark is offering a lifetime 20 percent discount to members of the Safe and Sound Schools network for personal/family accounts.

For more information, visit Bark’s Web site.

About Safe and Sound Schools

Michele Gay and Alissa Parker founded Safe and Sound Schools in 2013, following the tragic deaths of their children at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Safe and Sound Schools works with school communities and mental health, law enforcement, and safety professionals to create and ensure the safest possible learning environment for all youth. The non-profit organization delivers crisis-prevention, response, and recovery programs, tools, and resources, backed by national experts, to educate all members of the school community, from students and parents, to teachers and administrators, to law enforcement and local leaders. Winner of the 2015 SBANE New England Innovation Award for nonprofits, Safe and Sound Schools continues to answer the growing needs of school communities with custom programs, assessments, and training, reaching schools in every state in the country. For more information, visit safeandsoundschools.org.

#####

January 16, 2019/by safesound

Hugs for Jayme, her family, and the community of Barron, Wisconsin

Blog

We are so thrilled to hear that Jayme has been found. The ordeal this family — this community — has had to endure has been horrific and on-going as her surviving family, community, and many of us across the country have waited, prayed, and hoped for her safe return.

Today Barron School District Administrator Diane Tremblay thanked Safe and Sound Schools for providing training and support in crisis response, trauma, and recovery. It is our honor and the mission of our dedicated network of professionals to be able to support the community, provide connections to resources, and to find meaning in our own loss and tragedy by helping others. We are grateful for the existing relationships and connections that we and our team members have with local school and law enforcement in and around this tightly knit community.

It is important to understand that Jayme and her community’s journey does not end today. While we feel joyous at Jayme’s return, the process of healing and recovery has no prescribed timetable. Each member of the community will have their own unique way to heal, their own journey to follow.

Safe and Sound Schools will continue to provide ongoing support, helping the community develop healthy and supportive programs, activities, and resources to help restore a sense of safety and build sustainability for the long term.

Jayme’s rescue has been truly a team effort among the public safety authorities, school leaders, and the entire community—not to mention this incredibly brave young lady herself. We commend the positive spirit and faith that kept hope alive for Barron and so many other communities facing and recovering from crisis.

Safe and Sound Schools

January 12, 2019/by safesound

Parents for Safer Schools: Action is the Antidote to Fear and Guilt

Blog

I can still remember the feelings of fear and guilt that washed through my body when I first heard a gunman had entered my daughter’s elementary school. Fear because only two months earlier, at a parent-teacher conference, I made comments to my husband about the flaws in the school’s security system. Guilt because I buried the pit in my stomach, despite knowing my child’s safety was in danger, and dismissed my concerns altogether. Guilt because I remember thinking the words, that would never happen here. Not only did it happen a few months later, but my daughter, Emilie, would be one of the victims who would not survive.

After the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary, I vowed to never silence my voice again. This was the beginning of my journey towards becoming a school safety advocate and co-founding Safe and Sound Schools.

When I travel across the country sharing my story, I am always approached by parents, just like me, who are concerned about their child’s school and feel completely lost about what to do. There was a lack of resources available for parents who also wanted to get involved in school safety, and I know from personal experience how intimidating the process can be.

The Parents for Safe Schools program is designed for parents who want a more hands-on approach to school safety. This free program helps guides you on how to organize your own community dedicated to safety.

Just like any school safety initiative, this is not a one-size-fits-all approach. That’s why the Parents for Safe Schools program offers different options, whether you want to start by learning more or sparking discussions at your school, or if you want to take action and advocate for safer schools in your community, Parents for Safe Schools has guidance just for you.

Over the years, I have seen how incredibly powerful the voices of parents advocating for their child can be. There is so much to be done, and Safe and Sound Schools invites you to join our mission. Together we can make our schools safe and sound.

Alissa Parker, Co-founder of Safe and Sound Schools

January 9, 2019/1 Comment/by safesound