Describes actions taken by the Missouri School Bus Contractors Association to resolve bus-handrail defects. Describes cooperative efforts to develop national standards from 1936 to the present, public perceptions of school-bus safety, and recent improvements and requirements in school bus safety. (LMI)

Presents the thesis that Consciousness-Based education, including the practice of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique, can be a highly effective tool for reducing or eliminating violent behavior in schools. Reviews research demonstrating that practice of the technique reduces 23 identified risk factors for crime in four broad…

PROJECT BLUE was funded during the first phase of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students initiative and proposed to provide students in its District with a range of services to improve school safety, decrease school violence, decrease alcohol and drug use, and improve student mental health. Selected results are highlighted and lessons learned from the…

Reviews the development of the concepts of gender equity and school safety, asserting that these conceptualizations are not sufficient to eradicate the problems each targets. Proposes a new approach to this goal of creating and ensuring a safe, equitable school environment that builds upon key aspects of gender equity and school safety but is…

In Georgia, the DeKalb School District's preparations for school safety include: fast-track evacuation procedures for schools near potentially dangerous sites; a plan that relocates students who are displaced from their schools; a capacity to provide shelter in case of emergency; and three means of internal communication. (MLF)

Examines the use of identification badges as an invitational approach to create schools without fear. High Schools were contacted which use identification badges for students, teachers, administration, staff, and visitors. Use of the badges was reported to be an effective and inviting measure within each of the three schools. (RJM)

Provides an update of the case law dealing with assaults on school personnel, including an illustrative Arizona case followed by a question-and-answer discussion posing certain hypothetical situations concerning the facts and law of the case. Draws implications for policy and practice. (Contains 13 references.) (PKP)

Describes a program involving the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) and the City University of New York (CUNY) in which a private contractor provides annual loss-prevention surveys and detailed safety reports for buildings at every CUNY campus. Discusses why the program has worked and its benefits. (EV)

Examines how to evaluate school security, begin making schools safe, secure schools without turning them into fortresses, and secure schools easily and affordably; the evolution of security systems into information technology systems; using schools' high-speed network lines; how one specific security system was developed; pros and cons of the…

Public schools that use punitive approaches toward student discipline can unwittingly promote violence and other antisocial behavior. This article reviews constructive and preventive methods to reduce school violence and vandalism. Various strategies are presented and discussed. (Contains 62 references.) (Author)

Surveyed and interviewed secondary school teachers and their students to examine the incidence of teachers' feeling unsafe, describing the extent to which those feelings related either to students' antisocial behavior, teachers' profiles, and school profiles. Teachers' feelings of unsafety were rarely affected by the incidence of students'…

Discusses the implications of "Niziol," a case in which a Florida high school student was killed in the school parking lot when his gun accidentally discharged. The parents sued the school board in federal district court. The magistrate dismissed all the federal law claims, though she postponed her decision on the state law claims. (MLF)

Offers ten suggestions for schools and universities to help maintain a healthy indoor environment: proper flooring, sanitary washrooms, consistent maintenance, indoor air quality, preventing mold, daylighting, good acoustics, avoiding volatile organic compounds (VOCs), ergonomic furniture, and well-maintained roofs. (EV)

Describes Florida's statewide effort to provide a means of collecting information on perceptions of safety held by students, teachers, and administrators to enhance the currently available school crime and violence data collected through the statewide incident referral system. Documents the design process and development of two statewide model…

Tells efforts by Pearland Independent School District (Texas) school board and superintendent to adopt a standardized dress code, an effort that led to student and community opposition and controversy. Describes lessons learned. (PKP)