Page 70 - ANAHEIM 2019

SESSIONABSTRACTS continued...
most important is the domain of school climate and culture. In most school districts the responsibility for each of these five domains is typically spread out among multiple departments and integration of all five into a cohesive, efficient and efficacious whole is challenging and difficult for a number of reasons. The overall effectiveness of any school safety and security system can be improved by thoughtful organization of the safety and security function
in a unified manner that integrates the five domains. 1. CPTED 2. Staffing and organizational design 3. Plans and operational protocols 4. Technology 5. School climate and culture CPTED is typically primarily a function of the facilities department. Building principals, staff and students are the personnel who live and work in this domain, but design is largely a function of facilities professionals and consultant architects. Staffing and organizational design of the security function varies widely among school districts with everything from school district police departments with certified officers to ununiformed security officers and use of para-educators for student security. Where district police exist there is often a chief of police and a department staffed with state certified uniformed peace officers, trained detectives, sometimes with K9 units and full time dispatch center. In other districts there may be one or several security staff with or without uniforms, usually unarmed and often not part of a centralized department,
but rather under the charge of individual school principals. In this circumstance the duties can vary widely school to school and there is typically little integration of this staff with other domains. Plans and operational protocols range from FEMA Complaint Comprehensive Emergency Operations Plans (EOP) to individual school Incident Management Plans that are not integrated into a district wide plan. Most schools have had relatively good incident plans for years. These often included contacts lists, basic response plans for different types of incidents ranging from weather to armed intruder. Operational protocols for security staff in schools have often been ad hoc and
not highly refined, nor part of an integrated district wide EOP. Increasingly, the long standard fire drills, tornado sheltering and related established protocols are being integrated into comprehensive FEMA style EOP’s that take the “all hazards” approach. The technology domain is rapidly evolving with the rapid increased in concern for, and response to, violence on school campuses. This domain has long included security cameras, fire and burglar alarms, intercom systems and notification trees. These are now supplemented with phone cell phone based notification apps, social media monitoring services, automated access controls (part technology and part CPTED). Much of the technology domain had been traditionally under direction of the IT department, but increasingly end users have more ownership of their devise and the uses thereof. Traditionally, school climate and culture was exclusively the domain of the educational administrators, building principals and teachers. Building a culture and climate of safety and security, freedom from bullying and abuse and sense of safety on campus was not seen as a part of the physical plant or facilities staff. A sense of student well-being and a climate of security on campus has not always been understood to be derived from good safety and security protocols like fire drills or knowledge of where to shelter
in severe weather. Increasingly, these are understood to be inter-related and inter-dependent. I will argue that the
five domains I have cited are each necessary, but none are sufficient without comprehensive integration of all five, to establishing a comprehensive system of school safety and security. In order to do that, leaders in each domain have got to let go of organizational stove pipe behaviors and work for comprehensive integration of the efforts of all staff in each domain. I will posit that culture and climate are primary and a disciplined approach to integration of the other domains is required. All the physical measures, all the technology and staff, all the plans and protocols are insufficient by themselves without a disciplined and comprehensive approach to full integration of all five domains. This session will explore the five domains and the typical organizational architectures where they live and work. Participants
will be provoked to engage their curiosity and create new ideas, to interactively explore existing conditions, to think creatively about over coming organizational barriers to effectiveness, to discover new alternatives and imagine what could be. SPEAKERS: Mike Maloney, REFP; Davenport Community School District