ADD – Safe Schools

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The Board of Education recognizes that effective learning and teaching takes place in a safe, secure, and welcoming environment and that safe schools contribute to improved attendance, increased student achievement, and community support. To that end, the Board directs the Superintendent, following regular review of relevant data and consultation with the school district accountability committee and school accountability committees, parents, teachers, administrators, students, and when appropriate, school psychologists and members of the community including victims advocacy organizations and local law enforcement, to develop and maintain a safe schools plan that includes:
  1. Procedures that address the supervision and security of school buildings and grounds.
  2. Procedures that address the supervision of students during school hours and school-sponsored activities.
  3. Procedures that address persons visiting school buildings and attending school-sponsored activities.
  4. Training programs for staff and students in crisis prevention and management.
  5. Training programs for staff and students in emergency response procedures that include practice drills.
  6. Training programs for staff and students in how to recognize and respond to behavior or other information that may indicate impending violence or other safety problems.
  7. Training and support for students that aims to relieve the fear, embarrassment, and peer pressure associated with reporting behavior that may indicate impending violence or other safety problems.
  8. Procedures for safe, confidential reporting of security and safety concerns at each school building.
  9. Procedures for regular assessments by school security professionals and law enforcement officers to evaluate the security needs of each school building and to provide recommendations for improvements, if necessary.
  10. Procedures for regular assessments by school climate professionals to determine whether students feel safe and to provide recommendations for improvements in school climate at each District building.
  11. Procedures to provide for regular communications between District officials, law enforcement officers, fire department officials, city and county officials, and local medical personnel to discuss crisis prevention and management strategies, including involvement by these parties in the development and revision of crisis prevention and management plans.
  12. Training programs for staff and students in safety precautions and procedures related to fire prevention, natural disaster response, accident prevention, public health, traffic, bicycle and pedestrian safety, and special hazards associated with athletics and other extracurricular activities.
  13. Procedures for the reporting of criminal activity to law enforcement.
Each building principal shall be responsible for the supervision and implementation of the safe school program at his or her school. The principal shall submit annually, in the manner and by the date specified by the State Board of Education, a written report to the Board of Education concerning the learning environment in the school during that school year. The report shall contain, at a minimum, the information required by law. It shall be the responsibility of the Superintendent or designee to compile the annual safety reports from each principal and submit the compilation to the Board of Education. The Board shall issue a final safety report. The report shall be made available to the public and shall be submitted to the State Board of Education in accordance with state law and regulation. NOTE: State law "encourages" school districts to provide a comprehensive age-appropriate curriculum that teaches safety in working and interacting on the Internet, as part of the board's safe school plan. C.R.S. § 22-32-109.1(2)(c). Districts are encouraged to incorporate the Internet safety topics into the teaching of the regular classroom curricula, rather than isolating the topics as a separate class. If the district develops a comprehensive curriculum or other approach to teach safety in use of the Internet, then appropriate language could be added to this policy.
Cross References: ECA - Security/Access to Buildings
KDE - Crisis Management
KI - Visitors to Schools
Legal References: C.R.S. § 9-1-101 through 9-1-106 (Construction Requirements, Fire Escapes, etc.)
C.R.S. § 22-3-101 through 11-3-104 (Eye Protective Devices)
C.R.S. § 22-32-109.1(2) (Safe School Plan)
C.R.S. § 22-32-109.1 (2)(b) (Safe School Plan)
C.R.S. § 22-32-110(k) (Board of Education - Specific Powers)
C.R.S. § 22-32-124(2),(3) (Building Inspections)
C.R.S. § 24-10-106.5 (Duty of Care)
Adoption Date: May 14, 2005 Last Revised: September 10, 2012
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