School Safety

Additional Resources

ED Response to NSBA GC's Letter to ED on OCR Bullying Guidelines
ED's March 2011 letter to NSBA GC Francisco Negron responding to NSBA December 2010 letter to ED on OCR bullying guidelines

NSBA's letter to the U.S. Department of Ed. on December 7, 2010
As you know, on October 26, 2010, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the United States Department of Education issued a "Dear Colleague" Letter to school districts advising of the Department's initiative on bullying in schools. The National School Boards Association (NSBA) shares the deep concern for maintaining the safety of all students and ensuring safe learning environments. However, NSBA's review of the "Dear Colleague" letter identified a number of concerns that we raised in a letter to the Department on December 7, 2010.

Warrington v. Tempe Elementary School District (Ariz. Sup. Ct.)
Negligence: school district's duty to students safely discharged from school bus.

School Safety and School Security
National School Safety and Security Services is a Cleveland (Ohio)-based, national school safety consulting firm specializing in: school security assessments; school safety and school emergency/crisis training; school crisis planning and emergency plan evaluations; and related school safety consultant services for K-12 schools.

Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools (OSDFS)
This office of the U.S. Department of Education administers, coordinates, and recommends policy for improving and funding programs, research, and activities for violence and drug prevention in schools.

A School Law Primer: Part II
Update your law library with the second part of this training tool from the NSBA Council of School Attorneys. Created to meet the needs of the attorneys who serve public school districts and those of the school community at large. Intended as a resource to help you keep your clients out of court, this school law training manual covers such topics as: employee rights, negligence, school safety and sexual harassment(click on each topic for chapter contents and sample PowerPoint¸ slides) Each chapter consists of three main components -- a presentation outline and case summaries; participant 'notes pages;' and a diskette containing Microsoft Powerpoint ¸ slides that correspond to the outline. This publication will save you hundreds of hours in research time, help when you have been called upon to do a presentation -- and need to have the material right at your fingertips, and be a valuable resource for training new associates and clients. Order No. 06-175-W. ISBN 0-88364-234-4(List $400.00, National Affiliates and Council Members $320.00)

Protecting Our Children
A 1999 resource from the California School Boards Association that suggests strategies to promote school safety.

Safe Schools, Safe Communities
Emphasizing the need for cooperation to prevent and respond to violence at school, this NSBA Council of School Attorneys publication examines how schools and communities can work together to make our schools safe. Among the topics discussed are the need to balance school safety needs and the rights of individual students, how to deal with threats of violence, the role of the school attorney in response to violence, and how to work with the media in times of crisis. Also included are other helpful materials such as sample interagency agreements, a list of other resources on school safety, warning signs that should trigger school response and sample policies. 98 pages. Order No. 06-177-W. ISBN 0-88364-238-7(List $25.00, National Affiliates and Council Members $20.00)

COSA eDocs Store resources on School Safety
A collection of downloadable resources available individually for purchase from the NSBA Council of School Attorneys (COSA) for modest fees.

Bullying and Harassment in Schools: An Educational DVD
This complete training package of DVD and materials for school district employees and administrators is produced by Texas Association of School Boards Legal Services and provides vignettes and legal information to equip school personnel to recognize, report, and respond to employee-to-employee sexual harassment; employee-to-employee racial and other harassment; employee-to-student sexual harassment; student-to-student sexual and other harassment; and student-to-student bullying. This resource is not specific to Texas law. More information on how a school district can use this tool is available here. (List $332.00).

Dealing with Legal Matters Surrounding Students’ Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
This Fall 2004 publication by an NSBA-led coalition of organizations provides practical guidance on schools’ legal responsibilities with respect to issue of students' sexual orientation, including harassment and bullying, curriculum, and other school programs and policies.

Post-9/11 Issues Affecting School Districts
2004 COSA Advocacy Seminar presentation, by Maree F. Sneed and John W. Borkowski, Hogan & Hartson L.L.P.

Resources on homeland security and emergency preparedness
A collection of resources on homeland security and emergency preparedness in schools.

Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2008
An annual publication of National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Institute of Education Sciences (IES), in the U.S. Department of Education, and the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in the U.S. Department of Justice, this report examines crime occurring in school as well as on the way to and from school. The 2008 report relies on data collected from a variety of surveys from 2003–04 to 2007. Data on crime away from school are also presented to place school crime in the context of crime in the larger society.

Court Allows Preventive Detention to Avert School Violence
Article published January 2002 issue of the NSBA Council of School Attorneys newsletter, Inquiry & Analysis, on the use of preventive, rather than disciplinary, detentions, as a preventative measure.

NSBA Guidelines: Disciplining Students for Serious Offenses
Article in the January 2002 issue of the NSBA Council of School Attorneys newsletter, Inquiry & Analysis, providing NSBA's statement on "zero tolerance" policies.

School Policies and Legal Issues Supporting Safe Schools
A publication of the Hamilton Fish Institute on School and Community Violence at George Washington University and the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, this guide addresses the development and implementation of school policies that support safe schools. It includes an overview of guiding principles when developing policies at the district level to prevent violence by students, as well as specific policy and legal considerations that relate to both preventive and responsive interventions on topics such as due process, threats of violence, searches, zero tolerance, dress codes, and cooperation with law enforcement.

CyberSmart! Cyberbullying Curriculum Package
NSBA's Technology Leadership Network is pleased to partner with CyberSmart! to distribute the free CyberSmart! cyberbullying prevention lessons to schools nationwide. The standards-based K-12 lessons are based on the most current research on online victimization, using best practices from the field of character education. Teacher lesson plans, student activity sheets, home connections, prevention activities, and optional Web 2.0 strategies are included.

No Rite of Passage: Coming to Grips with Harassment and Bullying
August 2006 issue of NSBA newsletter Leadership Insider. Includes articles on legal liability for harassment and bullying; cyberbullying; and finding common ground on divisive issues like how to deal with harassment based on sexual orientation.

Additional online resources on harassment and bullying
Collection of online resources accompanying the August 2006 issue of NSBA newsletter Leadership Insider, including those discussed in the articles.

Public Schools and Sexual Orientation: A First Amendment framework for finding common ground
2006 resource on how a school community can reach common ground on divisive issues involving sexual orientation in public schools, such as harassment and bullying. Includes tips for school officials and tips for parents and students. The diverse group of organizations that issued the resource included both the Christian Educators Association International and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), as well as the American Association of School Administrators (AASA), and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), BridgeBuilders, and the First Amendment Center.

State Anti-bullying Statutes - Definitions
7/18/2011 Compare the definition of "bullying" in state anti-bullying laws by reviewing this chart. Note that some laws include "harassment" and/or "intimidation" as part of the definition of "bullying," while others separate the concepts.

State Anti-bullying Statutes - Table
7/18/2011 This chart compares current state statutes addessing bullying, summarizing key provisions including definitions, off-campus reach, and requirements placed on state and local educational agencies.

NSBA Position Statement to U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Briefing on Inter-Student Violence
School boards are dedicated to providing a safe learning environment, and to preventing and eliminating bullying and harassment in public schools.

Supplemental Materials on U.S.C.C.R. Briefing on Inter-Student Violence
These extensive materials, including an explanatory cover letter, provide a snap shot of the tireless work of state school boards associations and local districts to prevent and address bullying in schools.

State Educational Agency Model Anti-Bullying Policies and Other Resources
7/28/2011 Find model anti-bullying policies and other resources required by state anti-bullying laws in this chart.