NJSBA Task Force Reports
- An updated report highlighting findings and insights from an NJSBA study, What Makes Schools Safe? The report includes 15 additional recommendations on response and recovery, law enforcement in schools, cybersecurity, after-school security, and more.
- The report of NJSBA’s Task Force on Mental Health Services in the Public Schools, Building a Foundation for Hope provides more than 70 recommendations, along with guidance and best practices.
- Final Report from the NJSBA Firearms Safety Task Force: Processes, Programs and Practices for Safety in School, Home and Community The report discusses the impact of children’s exposure to violence; effective strategies to protect children from accidental injury; safe gun storage, handling and use; and school- and community-based partnerships that address students’ mental and emotional health and help them overcome trauma and defuse conflict.
School Safety in the News
School Board Notes: Legislative Update: Mental Health and School Security Measures Advance (6/14/2022)
School Leader Magazine: School Security Roundtable (Spring 2022)
School Leader Magazine: Special Section on School Security (May/June 2018)
Articles include:
- School Security Redefined
- NJSBA Q&A: One Local School Board Addresses School Safety
- Trending in School Security
General Resources
American School Counselor Association: webinars, guidelines, tips, videos and additional resources.
Center For Resilience + Well-Being in Schools, University of Colorado Boulder
- Talking to Teens about Violence (En Español).
- Talking to Children: When Scary Things Happen (En Español).
- Tips for Talking to Students about Violence.
The Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress
- Grief Leadership: Leadership in the Wake of Tragedy
- Leadership Communication: Anticipating and Responding to Stressful Events
- Coping with Stress Following a Mass Shooting
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
- After the Injury — a website for families with injured children, which includes ways to help children recover.
Dylan’s Wings of Change, a nonprofit foundation named after a child who died in the Sandy Hook, Connecticut shooting offers youth-led social-emotional learning programs for children and professional development for adults.
Grief Counseling
- Melissa Brymer, director of Terrorism and Disaster Programs at UCLA-Duke Center for Child Traumatic Stress, mbrymer@mednet.ucla.edu.
- Good Grief, Princeton, N.J.
- National Alliance for Children’s Grief, Northfield, N.J.
- Psychology Today, a listing of grief therapists in New Jersey.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network:
- Talking to Children about the Shooting.
- Helping Youth After a Community Trauma: Tips for Educators(En Español)
Coping After Mass Violence: for Adults.
- For Teens: Coping After Mass Violence(En Español).
- Helping School-Age Children with Traumatic Grief: Tips for Caregivers(En Español).
- Helping Teens with Traumatic Grief: Tips for Caregivers(En Españoll).
- Helping Young Children with Traumatic Grief: Tips for Caregivers(En Español).
- Guiding Adults in Talking to Children about Death and Attending Services.
- After a Crisis: Helping Young Children Heal.
- Age-Related Reactions to a Traumatic Event.
- Psychological First Aid(En Español), early intervention to support children, adolescents, adults, and families impacted.
- PFA Mobile and the PFA Wallet Card(En Español) provide a quick reminder of the core actions.
- PFA online training course is also available on the NCTSN Learning
- Psychological First Aid for Schools – field operations guide.
- Providing PFA-S: For Health-Related Professionals – handout.
- Providing PFA-S: For Principals and Administrators– handout.
- Providing PFA-S: For School Support Staff – handout.
- Providing PFA-S: For Teachers– handout.
- Health Care Toolbox — website for pediatric health providers working with injured children.
Moms Demand Action, Community-led services for survivors of gun violence.
National Association of School Psychologists, Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers.
National Education Association, School Crisis Guide, a step-by-step outline of what to do before, during and after any school or community crisis.
The National Mass Violence and Victimization Resource Center
- Transcend NMVC from The Medical University of South Carolina (mobile app to assist with recovery after mass violence).
- Rebuild your Community: Resources for Community Leaders.
- Media Guidelines for Homicide Family Survivors.
- Timeline of Activities to Promote Mental Health Recovery.
- Self-Help: Resources for Survivors.
- E-learning Courses: Training for Clinicians.
- Resources for Victim Assistance Professionals.
National Alliance on Mental Illness, one-on-one helpline 10 a.m. – 10 p.m., Monday through Friday. (800) 950-NAMI (6264) or helpline@nami.org.
Navigating A Mental Health Crisis, a downloadable guide available in English and Spanish. The guide outlines what can contribute to a crisis, warning signs, strategies to de-escalate, etc.
National School Safety Center, handouts and information concerning schools and terrorism, schools and readiness.
News stories:
- How to talk to kids after 19 children, 2 adults killed in Texas school shooting, ABC News.
- Reflections from American’s litany of school shootings: What to say, what to do, Chalkbeat.
Sandy Hook Promise, The Learning Center
- Start with Hello, grades K-12, free activities and curriculum to teach students to be more socially inclusive and connected to each other to end social isolation.
- Say Something, grades 4-12, in four out of five school shootings, the attacker told people of their plans ahead of time. This program provides a social-emotional learning curriculum, instruction, and programming to build essential SEL competencies.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: Disaster Distress Helpline – call or text 1-800-985-5990 (for Spanish, press “2”) to be connected to a trained counselor 24/7/365.
Traumatic Loss Coalitions for Youth, funded by the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, this organization offers coordinators who work within their counties to develop and/or Lead Response Teams or support an existing one. Training is also offered, including suicide awareness training for educators and post-traumatic stress management for school crisis teams.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network: A handout that provides tips on how to respond and help students cope with tragedy.
Video Series: NJSBA’s Education Matters: Conversations on School Security
“Conversations on School Security” contains important information for all school leaders and district staff members who play a role in school safety.
The School Resource Officer
The NJSBA School Security Task Force identified the School Resource Officer (SRO) as the “preferred” model for a law enforcement presence in schools. In this video, Gary Gubbie, Maple Shade Township police chief and president of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, discusses the role of the SRO.
Police and Schools: Building a Collaborative Relationship
A strong relationship between the school district and local law enforcement is essential to ensuring student safety. Steve Forte, Denville Public Schools superintendent, and Chris Wagner, Denville police chief, discuss ways to build an effective relationship.
Security Staffing: Options for School Districts
Law enforcement presence in schools can include a School Resource Officer and Class II or Class III Special Law Enforcement Officers. Denville Public Schools Superintendent Steve Forte and the township’s police chief, Chris Wagner, address the various types of law enforcement officers who provide services in schools.
Administrators: Looking at Schools with an Eye Toward Security
Traditionally, school administrators look at school buildings with an eye toward learning. But today they also focus on security and student safety. John Niesz, Keansburg Public Schools superintendent, discusses the administrator’s security vantage point.
Police as Part of the School Community
How do SROs or other school law enforcement officers become part of the learning environment? Gary Gubbie, Maple Shade chief of police and president of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, explains the process.
What is a Class III Officer?
A 2016 statute created the new Class III Special Law Enforcement Officer category, giving school districts another option for security personnel. In this video, the president of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, Gary Gubbie, addresses the role and responsibilities of the Class III officer.
Social-Emotional Character Development
A safe and secure school requires staff professional development and personnel centered on students’ social-emotional needs. In this video, Kathleen Taylor, the Ocean City Public Schools superintendent, discusses the importance of school climate.
Security Starts with the Students
Often, conversations about security focus on the building layout, equipment, and law enforcement. However, addressing a student’s emotional needs is also critical. Ocean City Public Schools Superintendent Kathleen Taylor continues the discussion on the importance of school climate.