Last week, another
school shooting took place in Parkland, Florida, and cut short the lives of 17 high-school
students. The epidemic of school
violence is a public health issue and warrants development and implementation
of evidence-based prevention strategies.
Each school shooting begins long before the fatal shots are fired; studies
show most have been planned up to 6 months beforehand. The answer to gun violence cannot be found in
the halls of Congress; the responsibility to protect our children lies with
every parent, teacher, politician, student, and community member in America. It is time to direct our efforts toward
preventing violence BEFORE it happens by recognizing the warning signs of a
child at risk and intervening. We must change the conversation about gun
violence to alter the course of the future for our children.
On December 14,
2012, 20 children and six adults were gunned down inside Sandy Hook elementary
school in Newtown, Connecticut. A core
group of parents who lost children that tragic day saw past their grief and created
Sandy Hook Promise (SHP), a non-partisan national nonprofit organization focused
on preventing gun violence BEFORE it occurs. SHP has trained 2 million adults across
50 states. Since inception, their
programs have helped stop multiple school shootings and suicides, reduced
bullying and victimization, and ensured hundreds of youth receive mental health
and wellness assistance.
Their
three-part program is extraordinarily simple and effective.
1. Know the Signs to identify when a
child is feeling alienated and connect with them by “starting with hello” and
“saying something” to a trusted adult.
2. Educate parents, teachers, and community
members using evidence-based violence prevention strategies.
3. Focus on the “human” side of gun
violence and be “above the politics.”
“Start with
Hello” is a program which encourages social inclusion and community connection.
Our children can be taught to recognize isolation, marginalization, and
rejection in their peers. Parents and
teachers can create a more inclusive school culture by training children to
reach out to those who seem lonely and support growth of their coping skills. Adverse childhood experiences can devastate
even the most resilient among us. The
value of connectedness between children cannot be overstated.
“Say Something” is designed for middle and
high school-aged children to better recognize the warning signs of escalating
behavior on social media in particular. When adolescents are struggling, they tend to
confide in their peers, many of whom are not equipped to intervene. The second part of this program teaches young
people to notify a trusted adult with their concerns. By looking out for one another, and taking all
threats seriously, whether written, spoken, in photo or video form, our schools
and communities will be made safer.
Safety
Assessment and Intervention (SAI) is a cornerstone of the Sandy Hook Promise program
that was developed by Dr. Cornell at the University of Virginia and has been
rigorously evaluated for more than a decade.
SAI trains multidisciplinary teams within schools and communities to
identify, assess, and respond to threats of violence while paying special
attention to address the underlying conflict which led to concerning behavior
in the first place. Scientific studies
show SAI-trained teams are capable of evaluating threats, distinguishing when
they are serious, and intervening to prevent violent acts.
Hilary
Clinton once said, “there’s no such thing as other people’s children.” Every child is mine. Every child is yours. Every child adds value to the world. By preventing just one child from bringing a
gun to school, we could transform the life of not only that child, but also every
student in attendance that day, plus every teacher, administrator, parent,
grandparent, and community member working to support vulnerable young people.
Laws will
not change the mindset of a school shooter; we can only make an impact by altering
the outlook of the school shooter. It is
time for meaningful action where we can find consensus. It is too late to go back and save the
children who were already gunned down at their schools, however we should honor
their lives by supporting programs like Knowing the Signs, focusing on the delivery
of mental health services to children and adolescents, and protecting at-risk
individuals from firearm access and ownership. We must talk with each other and our children
about gun violence before more children die.
You can
learn more about the Sandy Hook promise at www.sandyhookpromise.org.
Additionally, I urge Gov. Jay Inslee and Washington State Superintendent of
Public Instruction Chris Reykdahl to review the Sandy Hook Promise program and
consider sharing the materials with every school district in Washington
State.
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