Take a second to think about all your safety resources and protocols you've implemented for school safety. What keeps your students and staff safe every day? Do you have a way to report and investigate threats to prevent emergencies before they happen?

In the 20 years since Columbine, there have been hundreds of school shootings, 140 dead, and 300 injured. Not to mention, the 220,000 students that have been directly affected by school shootings because they were in the buildings at the time these events took place. While thousands more are impacted by daily incidents like bullying, teasing, and kids just not being able to cope with their own emotions or anxiety.

School safety spending in the United States continues to climb. Since 2018, legislators in more than half the states have approved nearly $1 billion for school safety programs. Allocations range from personnel (School Resource Officers, Counselors, etc.) to training to technology and security measures. In the rush to do 'something' to improve the safety of students and schools, there is little consistency from district to district—or state to state—in terms of what measures take priority.

It's back-to-school time, and hopefully you've checked all the boxes for getting your staff, classrooms, and students ready for the upcoming school year. But in all of the back-to-school rush, you may have forgotten about your to-do list for safety.

Threats can emerge from virtually anywhere—from tornados, floods, hurricanes, and other severe weather events to health concerns like drugs, weapons, or violence—making it important to have response protocols to account for all of them. For many of the situations that occur, your onsite safety team can address them, however some will require outside assistance.

Improving school safety is rarely simple, and it's never as easy as flipping a switch. Often times, small, piece-meal improvements can be made over the course of the school year, but major changes in school safety require rolling out a comprehensive initiative.

CrisisGo recently co-hosted a school safety roundtable with school district representatives from the Saint Louis area. During the meeting, Levaughn Smart, Director of Security for Kirkwood School District spoke about the importance of communication during an emergency.

Being prepared during an emergency can make all of the difference in the outcome. Here are five tips to help your district and schools be more prepared when a crisis strikes.

After two years of high-profile incidents, school safety has been a top priority for school district leaders, school boards, and communities around the country. Some statistics report there have been 25 incidents of gunfire on school grounds in 2019; that follows 103 incidents of gunfire on school grounds in 2018, including some highly publicized tragedies in Florida and Texas.

With school shootings, violence, and bullying on the rise, improving the safety of our students and schools remains a top priority for district administrators across the nation. For many district administrators, "hardening" school facilities is the most common response to the constant pressure from parents, communities, and school boards to do "something."