School Safety Matters
In this issue:
Youth Concussion Guidelines
New SafeSchools Feature: Exportable Employee Data
Bullying Prevention
SafeSchools New Course Spotlight: Office Ergonomics
School Safety Tip of the Month: Electrical Safety
School Safety Quote of the Month: School Webcam Case
Take a Test Drive
Mom Sues; Says Teacher a Bully
23 Students and Teacher Hospitalized for Carbon Monoxide Exposure
Teacher Tackles Gunman after School Shooting
Other Relevant School Safety News Stories -- Links Only
Youth Concussion Guidelines
As the issue of youth concussion management continues to gain prominence, several dozen states are considering legislation regarding return-to-play strategies for young athletes. Until legislation is potentially enacted in all states, however, many school employees – particularly coaches – are left wondering: What’s the best policy to follow? During a House Judiciary Committee meeting on head injuries in college and youth football, Dr. Stan Herring, team doctor for the Seattle Seahawks and an expert in youth-related concussions, discussed the nation’s toughest return-to-play law which has been enacted in the state of Washington – the Zackery Lystedt Law. As a result of this legislation, athletes under 18 who sustain a concussion can only return-to-play with written approval from a licensed health care provider. He stated: “Would it be nice to have certified athletic trainers at every school? Sure. But is that realistic today? Maybe not. But do you know what is realistic? When in doubt, sit ‘em out. It’s a rule, not a suggestion. For today, right now, this is a simple solution.”
SafeSchools is currently hard at work on a course addressing concussion recognition and management. For more details, please contact us at info@safeschools.com.
New SafeSchools Feature: Exportable Employee Data
Beginning this week, SafeSchools administrators will notice an exciting new feature within the Data Management tab: exportable employee data! Much like the Reports tab, all it’ll take is a quick click on the “Export to Excel” icon to provide you with a complete list of the employee data entered into your SafeSchools site. All data will be included, and you’ll notice separate rows for those staff members with multiple positions and/or buildings. This also makes updating your staff data easier than ever – simply modify the exported excel spreadsheet, send back to us, and we’ll have your site updated with the latest records in no time at all (usually within 24 hours)!
Questions? Contact your SafeSchools Account Manager at 1-800-434-0154.
Bullying Prevention
Although schools across the country are taking serious measures on the education and prevention of bullying, it’s clear that this devastating problem continues to pose a challenge to students, parents, school staff members, and entire communities. In one recent case, an Ohio school district is being sued after two teachers allegedly taunted a student over the length of his hair. In another case, two students were recently expelled from a Massachusetts high school after a student they allegedly bullied committed suicide. After this case and the suicide death of another young student, Massachusetts lawmakers are now moving forward with a new anti-bullying law. Education is one step in combating and preventing such tragedies, however, and the SafeSchools online safety training system offers a wide array of expertly-authored courses to instruct and train your school employees on various topics related to bullying. Courses like Bullying: Recognition and Response, Online Safety: Cyberbullying, Youth Suicide: Awareness and Prevention, and even our upcoming course Diversity Awareness: Staff-Student, for example are all relevant not just to news headlines, but to the everyday lives of school staff members.
Click here to view our full list of 125+ school-focused safety trainings.
SafeSchools New Course Spotlight: Office Ergonomics
Once we get into the workday routine, it can be easy to overlook such seemingly-minor issues as the way you position your hands when you type and your posture as you sit at your desk. However, both of these examples can cause Cumulative Trauma Disorders, or CTDs. CTDs are injuries to your joints, muscles, nerves, tendons, or bones as the result of the repetition of actions that, performed only once, would not cause injury. Although they may seem insignificant in the face of other workplace hazards, CTDs actually account for nearly two-thirds of all workplace-related injuries! Therefore, it’s extremely important to train your school or district staff on the prevention of CTDs. Customized especially for school staff, SafeSchools’ Office Ergonomics course highlights cost-effective ergonomic strategies for preventing repetitive-stress injuries, such as CTDs.
If you have questions about the course or would like a 30-day trial of SafeSchools.com, contact us at info@safeschools.com.
School Safety Tip of the
Month: Electrical Safety
How much do you know about electrical safety? Did you know, for example, that .05 amps (50 milliamps) is enough to cause your breathing to stop and possible death? A typical circuit providing electricity to computers or vacuum machines, however, is rated at 20 amps (20,000 milliamps)! Considering these facts, it’s important to always be aware of the frequently-overlooked dangers electricity can pose. Here are some safe tips:
- Beware of an electrical cord that’s hot to the touch! Unplug the equipment immediately and call the maintenance department.
- Light duty extension cords (those you probably use at home) have no place in the school setting, as they are more likely to fail to trip a circuit breaker and therefore start a fire.
- Extension cords are to be used for temporary and portable equipment only.
- Never pull on the cord itself to remove a power cord from a receptacle! This can damage insulation and expose live wires. Always remove the cord by grasping the plug.
For more information, please see SafeSchools Electrical Safety course.
School Safety Quote of the
Month: School Webcam Case
Internet privacy lawyer Parry Aftab had the following to say regarding a recent lawsuit claiming a school district remotely activated cameras on school-owned laptops outside the school grounds: “Schools have very limited authority under the Constitution to deal with things that are off-premises after hours and have nothing to do with school itself, so in this case I think the school was out of bounds, literally. Schools are schools, police are police, and they never should meet.”
Take a Test Drive
Have you ever considered online safety training for your school or district? The SafeSchools 30-day free trial is an easy way to review courses and administrative features to see if online training can work for you. Just fill out our free trial form, and we'll send you a guest account to our demonstration site.
Mom Sues; Says Teacher a Bully
A teacher and teacher’s aide allegedly taunted and bullied an 11-year-old boy because of his long hair.|
http://communitypress.cincinnati.com/article/AB/20100126/NEWS01/1270337/Mom-sues-says-teacher-a-bully
23 Students and Teachers Hospitalized for Carbon Monoxide Exposure
One teacher and a student collapsed from exposure.
http://www.newyorkinjurynews.com/2010/02/18/23-students-and-teachers-taken-to-hospital-for-carbon-monoxide-exposure_201002182481.html
Teacher Tackles Gunman after School Shooting
Sheriff hails math teacher as a hero for preventing ‘a more tragic event.’
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35557049/ns/us_news/
Other Relevant School Safety
New Stories -- Links Only
High School Girl Takes Life after Allegedly Taunted by Cyberbullies: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,583948,00.html
9-Year-Old Commits Suicide: http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/bestoftv/2010/01/25/hln.pn.suicide.at.nine.cnn
Fraternity Brother Branded; Family Furious, Claim ‘His Backside Is a Crime Scene’: http://abcnews.go.com/WN/texas-fraternity-brother-branded-family-furious-ritual/story?id=9688654
Ninth-grader Fatally Shot by Classmate at School: http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/06/alabama.student.killed/index.html?hpt=Sbin
Staffer Arrested in Tennessee School Shooting: http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/10/tennessee.school.shootings/index.html?hpt=Sbin
How FIVE Teachers at ONE School All Seduced Pupils: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1250060/How-FIVE-teachers-ONE-school-seduced-pupils.html
6 Charged with Sorority Hazing: http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local&id=7243439&hpt=T2
Teacher Accused of making 4th-graders Fight: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35196741/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/
Cops Allegedly Taser High School Student during Brawl: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/35199460#35199460
Florida Student Reportedly Kicked out of Honor Society over Facebook Page: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,584786,00.html?loomia_ow=t0:s0:a4:g4:r2:c0.000000:b0:z5
From Star Student to Stripper: http://www.kgw.com/news/local/From-Clark-Co-star-student-to-stripper-81640577.html
Schoolgirls Aged Just 10 Falling Pregnant as Underage Pregnancies Rise: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1249411/Schoolgirls-aged-just-falling-pregnant-underage-pregnancies-continue-rise.html
Student’s Facebook Tirade against Teacher Is Protected Speech: http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/02/student-facebook-tirade-against-teacher-is-protected-speech/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wired%2Findex+(Wired%3A+Index+3+(Top+Stories+2))
Girl’s Arrest for Doodling Raises Concerns about Zero Tolerance: http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/18/new.york.doodle.arrest/index.html?hpt=C1
Lawsuit: School Spied on Students Via Webcam: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35461838/ns/technology_and_science-security
Arizona School Buses Equipped with WiFi; Student Safety, Productivity Increase: http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/14/arizona-school-bus-gains-wifi-students-suddenly-chill-out-and-g/
Girl, 6, Handcuffed, Committed Because of Classroom Misbehavior: http://www.wpbf.com/mostpopular/22526263/detail.html
Principal, Asst. Principal Shot by Teacher in Tennessee: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35333427/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts
Pennsylvania Court Rules School Can Punish Student Over MySpace Parody: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,584845,00.html?test=latestnews
Two Massachusetts Teens Suspended in Cyber Bullying Suicide Case: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,584057,00.html?test=latestnews
Victims of Bullying Face Lingering Health Issues: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35020704/ns/health-kids_and_parenting
Google Execs Convicted in Italy for Downs Video: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE61N0Q120100224
Students Expelled Following Teen’s Suicide: http://www.thebostonchannel.com/education/22653526/detail.html?hpt=T2
Teachers’ Lap Dance Video Sparks Uproar at Canadian High School: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,587337,00.html?loomia_ow=t0:s0:a4:g4:r3:c0.000000:b0:z5
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