Industry Insider News: PublicSchoolWORKS Parent InfoCenter Gives Districts Added Visibility with Parents

In order to help districts in various states across the country meet new requirements to make safety resources available to parents, PublicSchoolWORKS has developed the Parent InfoCenter. This service has been added to the company’s Student Bullying and Violence Prevention program (SBVVP). The Parent InfoCenter is custom-designed to meet state-specific requirements on safety awareness for parents, including bullying prevention and child abuse prevention training. It features online training, awareness information and reporting tools for students and parents. In addition, staff may use the tool to share information with parents during parent/teacher nights. The Parent InfoCenter includes:

• Parental Awareness Information – Child Abuse Prevention, Bullying Prevention and other information may be made available for parents via this portal to help parents understand how their children are being protected.
• Student & Parent Reporting Systems – Online and telephone reporting options for students and parents.
• A Student Reporting Poster – A printable poster that provides students with the resources to report safety concerns via telephone or online.
• Safety Information Repository – A place for safety information that the school wants to include, either PublicSchoolWORKS created or school created.


To learn more about PublicSchoolWORKS’ Parent InfoCenter, email sales@publicschoolworks.com

Spotlight: Dangerous Chemicals in School

Tradewinds Middle School, part of the School District of Palm Beach County in Florida, was partially evacuated on the morning of Feb. 9, 2012 after two students brought an explosive to the school and an additional two students set it off. The four Tradewinds students, who are facing suspension and possible expulsion, may also face criminal charges for bringing the mixture of household chemicals to school. According to an article on The Palm Beach Post, a member of the school staff tried to clean up the blast after hearing it go off. Following student reports of a “strange smell,” the Greenacres Fire Rescue's Hazardous Materials team was sent to the school. There were no reported injuries at the school.

When incidents like those at Tradewinds Middle School occur, it is imperative that staff know the proper action to take to ensure that both students and staff are safe. With PublicSchoolWORKS Emergency Response course, part of the award-winning EmployeeSafe Suite, administrators will learn the importance of developing and disseminating an emergency action plan to ensure all staff know the proper policy and procedures for partial- and full-school evacuations. Do you have an evacuation plan set for your school. How did you staff respond during a recent evacuation? Share your comments with us on Twitter @PSWORKS.

Source: The Palm Beach Post

Spotlight: Alaska School Closing

A school in St. Paul, Alaska was forced to close for one day in February 2011 due to a fire in a nearby warehouse. The St. Paul School, which serves 74 PreK-12 students, was forced to shut its doors as a result of potential hazardous chemicals being released from a nearby blaze at a Trident Seafoods warehouse. According to an article on The Dutch Harbor Fisherman, the Superintendent of the Pribilof Islands School District, Jamie Spacks, stated that there were fumes seeping inside the school and a cloud of smoke hovering over the top of it on the day of the fire. After reopening, Spacks reported there were no further smoke problems at the school.
With PublicSchoolWORKS Flammable Liquid Safety course, part of the award-winning EmployeeSafe Suite, staff will learn about the dangers of failing to safely store flammable/combustible liquids in order to prevent situations like those in St. Paul from happening at a school. Do you educate your staff on the proper ways to store and handle chemicals? To share what your district is doing, comment on our Facebook page.

Source: The Dutch Harbor Fisherman

March 18th marks National Poison Prevention Week

According to POISON PREVENTION.ORG, March 18-24, 2012 is the 50th Anniversary of national Poison Prevention Week. This week is devoted to highlighting the dangers of poisonings and how to prevent them. With PublicSchoolWORKS’ (PSW) Chemical Safety course, districts will learn the importance of classifying chemicals based on their hazards and how to predict chemical reactions in order to control potentially hazardous situations. The PSW’s Chemical Safety course focuses on:

• Physical and health hazards common to the handling and use of chemicals
• Methods and techniques used for evaluating chemical exposure
• Measures to protect against exposure
• Safe practices for chemical storage and waste disposal
• The correct response to emergency situations involving a chemical spill

To learn more about PublicSchoolWORKS’ Chemical Safety course, email sales@publicschoolworks.com

Spotlight: Teen Dating Violence

After tragically losing her daughter to an act of teen dating violence, author Vicki Crompton-Tetter is speaking out on a new teen dating concern, obsessive dating. According to a recent article in the Winnipeg Sun, Tetter states that instances of verbal and emotional abuse and controlling behavior have risen with the availability of computers, iPhones and GPS systems. The article also cites a shocking U.S. statistic that one in three girls between the ages of 10 and 18 have been assaulted by a boyfriend, either physically, sexually, emotionally or verbally. As a teen dating violence education advocate and counselor, Tetter states that if a parent suspects his or her child is involved in an abusive relationship the most important thing to do is to voice your concern and keep communication lines with your child open.

With PublicSchoolWORKS’ Student Safety Reporting System, part of its award-winning StudentWatch Suite, parents and students are provided with 24/7 online and telephone reporting tools enabling them to report issues of teen dating violence and other concerns that might impact the safety of students, staff, or property. Additionally, as part of the EmployeeSafe Suite, PublicSchoolWORKS provides training on Teen Dating Violence to help staff recognize and respond to the signs of teen dating violence. Are you providing the training tools to help your staff?

To share what your district is doing, comment on our Facebook page.

Source: Winnipeg Sun

Spotlight: New California Legislation

A new California state law, which will go into effect July 1, 2012 will require additional bullying training for administrators and simplify the process for victims of bullying to transfer schools. In addition, this new law will expand existing legislation to mandate that schools have comprehensive safety plans in place.

As legislation expands and changes, it is essential that districts have the ability and resources to adapt and comply with the law. With PublicSchoolWORKS’ Bullying Prevention-Administrators course, Administrators learn how to recognize bullying and intervene when bullying occurs and how cyber-bullying makes its way from the computer to the classroom. Most importantly, they will learn about the effects of bullying, the signs that someone is being bullied and how to stop bullying when it is seen happening. How is your school handing reports and acts of bullying? Share your comments with us on Twitter @PSWORKS.

Source: Ventura County Star

Industry Insider News: Your School or District Could Win a New Conflict Management Program through a February Cerebellum Grant

Every week this month, Cerebellum Corporation, the producer and distributor of the award-winning Standard Deviants videos, will offer one school in need a 4th Edition Kelso’s Choice Conflict Management Skills curriculum kit. The kit presents students with nine options to resolve minor conflicts and helps students to identify the difference between problems they can resolve individually and problems that require the assistance of an adult.

For a chance to win this program, submit your story about why your school needs Kelso’s Choice Conflict Management Skills or how your students could benefit from receiving this curriculum via email to: customerservice@kelsoschoice.com or make a post on the Kelso’s Choice Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelsos-Choice/154814201238590?sk=wall.