Resources
SAFA has compiled a Master Research Index containing the research and resources needed to populate SAFA’s virtual platform. The index has been broken down into specific sections in order to provide an easier transition onto the SAFA platform.
School Safe Technology
This page contains research and resources surrounding existing school safe technology. These resources include overviews of products; the background of school safe technology; case studies; market highlights; and the development of these technologies. Some products include the Guardian Indoor Active Shooter Detection System, Spot Shooter, Raptor Technologies, Say Something Anonymous Reporting System, Stanley Security, Hero 911, SchoolGuard, C2P Detection System and IDEES. These resources also aid in analyzing the current school safe technology market and comparing existing technologies to SafeEVAC. The contents of this folder are located in Appendix C.
Foundations and Organizations
This page includes foundations and organizations that support gun violence prevention and school safety in America. Some examples are Cure Violence, Everytown Research, Joyce Foundation, the National Threat Assessment Center and school leadership associations. These organizations along with those found in the Safety Funds and Programs folder also serve as potential members and/or partnership prospects for SAFA. These resources are listed in Figure D-1 in Appendix D.
Research and Fact Sheets
This section consists of research and fact sheets concerning various topics such as gun violence and school shootings in America; the background and factors around school shootings; the effects of shootings on society; personal accounts of victims; stakeholder perceptions; the effect of social media; and threat occurrences. For example, this section includes multiple resources from the Sandy Hook Promise organization concerning gun violence facts in America. NCES provides a report on financial statistics for schools such as enrollment, dropouts, graduation and labor force/secondary education outcomes.
Threat Assessment
The subfolder under Resources and Best Practices, Threat Assessment, consists of best practices focused on threat assessment and threat assessment teams in schools. This folder includes research connected to threat assessment; threat assessment programs; more training resources; reports; and existing models and plans. School Threat Assessment Consultants LLC provides a manual for creating a school threat assessment along with comprehensive guidelines. Another resource by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration outlines risk factors of youth violence.
Bullying
This page consists of resources for parents, teachers, and students about bullying. Resources include information such as what to do if your child is getting bullied, what students should do when they see someone getting bullied, cyberbullying, and much more.
Mental Health
Mental health is an important aspect of keeping schools safer. This page consists of resources that discuss mental health's impact on gun violence in schools, parent's role in their child's mental health, and the mental impact of victims of gun violence.
Safety Funds and Programs
Safety Funds and Programs are located in a sub-folder and are listed in Figure D-2 in Appendix D. These resources include various funds such as The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, the Kendeda Fund and the Children’s Defense Fund. This folder also includes overviews of different programs created to provide training, technologies and intervention on school safety nationwide.
Resources and Best Practices
The Resources and Best Practices portion of the Master Research Index revolves around the various existing practices, general information and resources for improving school safety, such as active shooter drills; trainings; databases; intervention plans; building networks and capacities; the role of stakeholders; program results; the school security industry; and other best practices. One document provides an in-depth literature from the National Association of School Psychologists and the National Association of School Resource Officers concerning drill approaches and planning; developmental and mental health considerations; and the effectiveness of active shooter and armed assailant drills. The document, “School Firearm Violence Prevention Practices and Policies: Functional or Folly?,” describes current school safety practices, prevention measures and policies on school firearm violence.
Other Clearinghouses
Another sub-folder of Foundations and Organizations includes research about the existing virtual clearinghouse launched by the Education Department to provide schools with actionable recommendations to create a safe and supportive learning environment. These documents are found in Figure D-3 in Appendix D.
Miscellaneous Companies
This sub-folder includes information on miscellaneous companies that are of potential use for SAFA, located in Figure DE in Appendix D. The company, Ect. Services, provides installation of security/safety systems with low energy costs, while increasing profitability and productivity. Issue Lab connects nonprofits to various knowledge and supports ongoing research in the social sector. Lastly, there is an article describing Levi Strauss & Co.’s commitment to supporting Gun Violence Prevention.
Policies
This folder consists of documents that cover gun violence prevention policies and school safety in America, found in Appendix E.
Combination of Resources
The documents found in this folder include resources and research on several aspects, including policies, programs and organizations. These recourses are listed in Appendix F.
School Data
The school data folder provides information and statistics on school data including planning and management; enrollment, dropout and post-secondary/labor force outcomes; county poverty data; statistics on Western Kentucky Educational Cooperative Districts; and targeted schools for SAFA’s initiatives. These resources are located in Appendix G.
Healthcare
This folder includes resources that could be used for improving gun violence prevention and safety in healthcare facilities, found in Appendix H.
Fundraising Best Practices
As part of objective two, Appendix I shows the research that has been done surrounding fundraising best practices for schools, along with fundraising softwares.