Introduction
School safety is a critical aspect of the US educational system. To ensure the safety of students, various measures are regularly taken. Schools are predominantly regulated and funded by state governments, which decide on reforms and public policy in this area. Moreover, at the local level, citizens have more opportunities to participate in policy-making. It includes publicizing the issue to be addressed, contacting officials, and grouping for collective initiatives (Kraft & Furlong, 2021). Therefore, this paper analyzes public policies regarding school safety and citizen participation in developing these legislations.
Analysis of School Safety Legislation
The problem of student safety is one of the main concerns of their parents. Existing threats, such as public shootings, natural disasters, bomb incidents, and others, are forcing local governments to pay more and more attention to school security problems and take measures to eliminate them. Despite having guidelines and resources provided by the federal government, “much of the work of improving school safety falls to state and local governments and school districts” (Horton, 2022, para. 1). Each state develops bills to prevent school violence and keep students safe in different scenarios.
Moreover, every school independently assesses the risks and introduces rules and plans for procedures for critical situations. According to statistics, in the 2019-20 school year, schools had action plans in the event of natural disasters (96.3%), public shootings (96.2%), bomb threats or incidents (93.3%), and other issues in the field of school safety (Safety and security practices, 2022). These statistics demonstrate a high level of awareness of educational institutions about possible threats and interest in solving this problem.
Moreover, since these policies are adopted locally, citizens have more opportunities to participate in the process of their development. It ensures a high level of public awareness of the issue and prompts the officials and citizens to work together to address a common problem (Kraft & Furlong, 2021). In addition, citizens can join interest groups and propose solutions to the government. For example, in Riverhead, New York, students and parents have asked the district administration to enhance school safety measures after several district student incidents with firearms (Lewis, 2023).
The existence of a visible problem within the community forces the public to pay more attention to it and causes additional pressure on officials. In the case of Riverhead, district officials and school administrators denied the problem until parents contacted students (Lewis, 2023). Therefore, the public interest in solving the problem is an effective driving force in policy-making.
Local governments are taking active steps to ensure school safety in response to public demand. For example, according to Ward (2023), teachers receive various training to recognize threats and take the necessary actions in response to them. Moreover, “92% of public schools either have a sworn law enforcement officer (SLEO) or school resource officer (SRO) routinely carrying a firearm” (Ward, 2023, para. 9). However, given the number of recurring security incidents for public school students, these policies are not enough to address the problem. That raises public outrage, increasing pressure on the authorities to improve school safety programs.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the involvement of citizens in policy-making is an important factor in finding a positive solution to the problem in the community. It ensures public attention to the officials’ actions and adds pressure on local governments. Moreover, citizens can unite in groups and collectively appeal to the authorities to highlight the problem and the need to solve it. The active involvement of the public in policy-making more often occurs at the local level. For example, since state governments run education, citizens can participate in developing programs and legislation to improve the safety of students in schools.
References
Horton, J. (2022). State approaches to school safety. The Council of State Governments. Web.
Lewis, A. (2023). Students and parents ask for increased school security after bullet incident, as administration assures safety. Riverhead Local. Web.
Kraft, M. E., & Furlong, S. R. (2021). Public policy: Politics, analysis, and alternatives (7th ed.). CQ Press.
Safety and security practices at public schools. (2022). National Center for Education Statistics. Web.
Ward, M. (2023). Safety first: How schools are investing in security in 2023. District Administration. Web.