About 200 people braved a cold, bitter night on Thursday, Jan. 24, to converge upon Ballston Spa High School with one question in mind: How do we keep our kids safe in school?
That question and many more were the highlights in a School Safety Forum sponsored by the Saratoga County League of Women Voters.
In her opening comments, LWV President Patricia Nugent reminded the audience of the recent Newtown, Conn., tragedy and at the same time challenged the seven forum panelists and audience members to try to find solutions to make schools safer for children.
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter,” she said, quoting Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Tonight we are not silent, this matters,” she continued. “Our kids are counting on us to protect them, to educate them, to love them enough to do something.”
Moderator Susan Arbetter, who hosts “The Capitol Pressroom” and is the director of news and public affairs at PBS station WCNY, addressed the new gun control laws recently passed in Albany and issued her own challenge.
“How do we find a balance as a community that we’re comfortable with?” she asked. “How do we all live and work together in a safe community where everyone’s rights are protected? From the person who owns a firearm, to the person who sends their child to school, from the right to protect your home, to the right not to worry about a stray bullet killing your child.”
The seven experts included educators, the state PTA president, a mental health expert and members of law enforcement, who all addressed concerns about gun violence in schools and explored ways to keep the children from becoming “collateral damage” in wake of the ongoing gun control debate.
All of the panelists had their own views and ideas on how to solve the problem, but one belief they had in common was the need for communication.
Kathleen Donohue, vice president of New York State United Teachers, assured audience members that teachers have a goal to create a safe, nurturing and supportive environment in which children can learn and grow.
“Nothing, nothing is more important to the educators that we represent and that are out there working than the safety of the children in the schools,” she said.
Dr. L. Oliver Robinson, superintendent of the Shenendehowa School District, agreed that the safety of children is the number one priority, but stressed that “it’s a fine line we don’t cross, between having schools being schools versus schools being correctional institutions.”
Robinson said deterrent measures could be put in place, including buzz-in access and security cameras.
“School safety is enhanced most by increased awareness,” said Robinson. “In every instance after a tragedy, people came forward to say ‘I knew, I thought, I wish I would of, could of said something.’”
Robinson said a nurturing environment needs to be present, in which people can be open to those comments. While he talked about security measures, he said armed security guards are not the answer. The National Rifle Association called for an armed guard in every school after the Newtown shooting.
“I’m not sure adding more guns to the equation is going to solve our problem,” Robinson said.
Panelist Karen Parlapiano, the region director for the Northeastern Region PTA, added that becoming a part of the local picture is part of communication.
“Parents and the community can mobilize by first coming together,” she said. “We are only as strong as our weakest voice.”
Parlapiano said society can’t afford to be complacent in a world that has changed in wake of the recent tragedies.
“We are one voice for every child,” she said.
No easy answers
An issue the panelists agreed contributes to a sometimes toxic atmosphere in schools is bullying and intolerance for those who are “different.”
Robinson wanted to know how the education and mental health community might address mental health issues without stigmatizing. He said the question is how to address those issues and concerns that may manifest themselves in dangerous behaviors in schools, churches and the community at large.
“We have to be very careful that we don’t create a stigmatizing situation,” he said.
Although the shooters in recent mass killing incidents have generally had mental problems and had been stigmatized by other people, panelist Dr. James Kelleher, chief medical officer at Four Winds Hospital in Saratoga Springs, said most people with mental illness aren’t violent.
“It’s not as easy as pointing to one tell-tale sign,” he said.
Robinson said the problem is identifying “bad guys” versus “weird guys.” He said the challenge is to not be oversensitive and communicate the idea that just because someone is different, they are bad. That can be a difficult message for children, he said.
“We need to foster an environment so students don’t feel like they are snitching,” he said, referring to responding to a dangerous situation. “There is no panacea, no one thing we can do that will solve that,” he said.
He said the schools need to foster a culture so that “someone who is different doesn’t do something to gain attention.”
The media’s contribution
Panelist Rosemary Armao, an investigative reporter and journalism professor at the University at Albany, discussed violence in the media and the effects of a decrease in investigative journalism.
“The media becomes a messenger for violence as a way of life,” she said.
She said in-depth reporting is usually expensive, time consuming and is on the decline, but when incidents like the shooting in Newtown happen, getting the correct information to the public is important. On the day of the shooting, many news outlets reported erroneous information in the heat of the moment.
“What you need from your media is ongoing, in-depth and crusading coverage,” Armao said. “You don’t know what you had until it’s gone.”
She also expressed the need to include children’s voices when covering tragic events.
“We don’t get kid’s voices enough in the media,” she said. “It’s important for the media to talk to kids.”
Regrouping and reinstituting
Robinson said there is some misunderstanding by the community when it comes to safety measures in schools. He added incidents like Columbine or Sandy Hooks are rare.
“The question is, are we trying to safeguard against death, or are we truly trying to create an environment that is focused on the everyday health and welfare of our students?” he said.
Robinson said schools are very safe relative to other public spaces like malls, playgrounds and subways.
“It’s a reality that we should ensure that we engage in approaches to try to address the problem and not just have a knee-jerk reaction,” he said.
New York State Trooper Kevin McMahan, who was one of the panelists and was involved in the School Resource Officer Program in Ballston Spa, said many schools have cut officer programs in the past because of cost, but are now considering putting them back in the budget.
“It’s still a good resource for schools,” he said. “The schools still need to work on safety programs.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposed 2013 state budget released this week includes $3.2 million for “school safety improvement teams,” but it isn’t clear exactly what that money would go towards.
In response to a written question from the audience, though, McMahon declined to say whether any particular weapons should be banned.
“We need to focus on preventing incidents from happening, rather than on prohibiting any particular kind of weapon,” he said. “It’s controlling the situation, rather than focusing on the kind of weapon.”
Since the Connecticut massacre, McMahon has been reassigned from road patrol to work on security with school districts in Saratoga, Warren and Washington counties.
“I have yet to find any districts that have major shortcomings,” he said.
Robinson said Shenendehowa administrators and staff have benefited from training in “incident command,” the system used by emergency responders to immediately assign response roles and assess unexpected situations.
“School safety is enhanced most through increased awareness,” Robinson said. “As we always encourage our students, if you see something, say something.”
Final solutions
When asked what those in the audience should take away from the forum, each panelist came up with different answers. Donohue said answers lie in education, in working with parents and children. Robinson felt the discussion proved there is a combination of things everyone needs to do.
“It is a collective effort to try to provide safety and support,” he said. “We can’t have a false sense of security.”
McMahon said every school should have a threat assessment program to try to better understand and prevent school violence.
Armao said schools need to develop media literacy training courses in which students can talk about violence in movies, video games, and TV shows.
Kelleher said the state should take steps to provide better access to mental health services.
Finally, Aimee Allaud, who is the Elections/Government Specialist for the NYS League of Women Voters, advised members of the audience to let their representatives know their opinions in order to make and change possible.