With the new school year approaching, the Delaware Emergency Management Agency launches an online hub focused on school safety.
DEMA’s Delaware School Safety Center is a central location with information for the state’s schools, parents, and staff.
Joey Melvin is the Executive Director of the Delaware Comprehensive School Safety Program. He says the new online hub offers a number of tools for public, private, and charter schools.
That includes active assailant training, behavioral threat assessment, emergency operations training, and physical safety assessments for schools, depending on the individual school’s situation.
“When we look at how much climate differentiates depending on where you go, different schools have different needs," he says.
And, while part of the program’s job is to make sure schools follow state regulations, Melvin says it’s equally important schools see his organization as a partner.
“A lot of schools are unsure about what direction to invest and we hope to be able to show them what's going to get them the highest return on investment and also a lot of things that they can do that they may not realize through policies, procedures that cost nothing," he says.
The Delaware School Safety Center website can be found at de.gov/demaschoolsafety.
