- From the Executive Director
- RISE 2024 Registration
- Student Engagement Contest
- SHINE/SEED Orientation
- ALPS Spotlight
- National Safety Month
- Threat Assessment Session
- SRMP Training
- Summer Reading Program
- School Safety Grant Scoring
- Executive Director Tours
- Calendar of Events
- Follow Us
- Tell Us About It
As breaks begin for North Carolina public school units, I want to let you know that there are many ways to engage with the Center for Safer Schools this summer.
The CFSS has active social media accounts on Facebook (@NCSaferSchools), Instagram (@centerforsaferschools) and X (@NCSaferSchools). Internet safety is vital when students are not in school, so our Teen Tech Talk Tuesday feature will run this summer.
Our monthly newsletter will be distributed in July and August. We have added new staff, and they will be announced in our July special-edition newsletter.
If you plan to attend the 2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit in Wilmington, you can engage with us – and one another – via Whova. Attendees are able to upload photos to the app and chat with CFSS staff and fellow participants. I encourage everyone in attendance to also post photos on social media with the hashtag #RISE2024.
Click here to view my monthly video message on YouTube, which for June focuses on safety over the summer break. Follow the CFSS on social media and check the Whova app for more information and updates on RISE 2024.
Thank you as we work together to make schools safer.
— Karen W. Fairley
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Registration is open for the 2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit. The Center for Safer Schools’ signature event will be held from Monday, July 29 to Wednesday, July 31 at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington.
RISE training focuses on the Resiliency, Information, Support and Empowerment needed when supporting children and adolescents in schools and communities. This training offers a variety of information sessions to participants covering the areas of bullying, suicide, opioid and substance use, critical incidents and other vital information about trauma and victimization among children and adolescents, and how these various dynamics impact school climate and school safety.
New for RISE 2024 is a parent/student component, which will be held (by invitation only) on Thursday, Aug. 1 and Friday, Aug. 2. Training sessions will not be recorded and are closed to the media. However, media representatives are invited to attend on the opening day.
Click here to register. Information on the training schedule is forthcoming. Follow the CFSS on Facebook and X (Twitter) for more details as they become available.
The Center for Safer Schools Student Engagement Team is holding a contest for K-12 students in North Carolina public school units in conjunction with the 2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit.
The theme is “Shine a Light on What a Safer School Looks Like.” Creativity is encouraged, as submissions could include videos, songs, poems, skits, speeches and chants.
The contest is divided into three categories: Middle School, High School and Classroom (New Hanover County only).
Two Middle School winners will receive a Chromebook and a trip to RISE 2024 at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington.
Four High School winners (two boys and two girls) will receive a Chromebook and a trip to RISE 2024 at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington.
In the Classroom category, each student in the winning New Hanover County classroom will receive a Chromebook.
The deadline for all submissions is Monday, June 17 at 5 p.m. All entries should be emailed to CFSS Executive Assistant-Interim Kaliah Thompson.
If you have questions, send an email to cfss@dpi.nc.gov.
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 Center for Safer Schools Student Engagement Coordinator Chelsea King (left) and Student Engagement Manager Stacie Alston, along with Graham County Schools Mental Health Liaison Sunny Pringle-Jenkins, greet SHINE and SEED participants Wednesday, May 29 at Robbinsville High School. (CFSS photo)
The Center for Safer Schools Student Engagement Team on Wednesday, May 29 held an orientation for the summer 2024 SHINE and SEED programs at Robbinsville High School.
Twelve Graham County Schools students will participate in the Safe Healthy Interactive Nurturing Empowerment Leadership Academy. SHINE is designed to prepare middle school students in creating a safer environment conducive for learning through understanding their school climate and how it affects their safety and that of their fellow peers.
Thirteen Graham County Schools students will participate in the Supporting, Educating, Empowering and Developing Program. SEED is a yearlong leadership program for high school students to gain meaningful work experience and to learn and develop the skills, attitudes and commitment necessary to succeed in today’s world of work.
CFSS Student Engagement Manager Stacie Alston said she looks forward to working with this summer’s cohort.
“SHINE and SEED help students keep their schools safer and teach important life skills,” she said. “Our goal is for the participants to be well-rounded and prepared for their chosen professions.”
Workshops and activities facilitated by the Student Engagement Team will be held in June and July. Representatives from a variety of industries – including culinary arts, law enforcement, education, trades and entertainment – will speak to participants during the summer.
Sunny Pringle-Jenkins, mental health liaison for Graham County Schools, said she’s excited about SHINE and SEED being held in western North Carolina. The initiatives cover many aspects of school safety, such as building healthy relationships, she said, which the participants will share with their peers.
“Some of these kids need this program, but the program needs these kids,” Pringle said. “I think we have awesome, awesome kids. All of these kids know they’re loved.”
This summer’s SHINE and SEED programs will conclude with sessions at the 2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington.
The Center for Safer Schools has developed a new section in its newsletter to highlight the work teachers, administrators, principals and staff do in Alternative Learning Programs and Schools (ALPS). This month’s theme is self-care.
A foundational way to begin fostering a healthier school climate is to help educators and school staff get in touch with, explore and cultivate their individual wellness. Taking care of yourself allows you to take care of others.
Take a minute to check in with how well you are taking care of yourself:
- How do you carve out “me time” during the workday, and what do you do?
- How do you make time for exercise, and what kind of exercise do you like to do?
- What do you do during the week to nurture your spiritual health?
- How do you unwind and recharge after work?
- How do you care for yourself when you have had an upsetting or stressful day?
- What strategies do you use to eat healthy?
- What morning routine helps you prepare emotionally for the day?
- What do you do with your friends or family that re-energizes you?
Share your self-care strategy here for a chance to be featured on CFSS social media. We hope sharing your self-care strategies can inspire other educators across North Carolina.
June is National Safety Month, when people focus on how they can keep their environment safe and free from any danger. Ensuring safety awareness for parents with children in school is crucial. Here are ways that parents can promote safety:
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Talk: Engage in open conversations with your children about safety risks, both at school and in the community. Discuss topics like stranger danger, emergency procedures and personal safety.
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Monitor: Keep an eye on your child’s social media activity. Be aware of any potential safety concerns or interactions that might arise online.
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Be honest: When discussing safety, honesty is essential. Avoid assumptions that your child already knows basic safety facts. Cover topics such as fire drills, evacuation plans and how to handle emergencies.
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Weapons access: Properly secure firearms and educate your child about the dangers associated with them.
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Gang identifiers: Familiarize yourself with gang identifiers and prevent your child from participating in gang-related activities.
The Center for Safer Schools will hold a Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) information session at the 2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit. The session is for BTAM teams, BTAM coordinators/leaders in PSUs and any staff who are responsible for setting up and monitoring BTAM teams.
This is not the full-day BTAM Training that will be set up regionally. However, it will include important best practice updates and legislative requirements for BTAM. If you attended the June 2024 training, you might want to attend this session as it will review updates and share future training sessions that might be of interest to your PSU.
The session will discuss the implementation and monitoring of the fidelity of behavioral threat assessment. The Student Support Intervention & Monitoring Plan will be reviewed, along with other helpful tools and resources for implementation.
The CFSS guidance document for school threat assessment teams is available here. If you have questions, send an email to cfss@dpi.nc.gov.
The Center for Safer Schools will hold in-person and online School Risk Management Plan trainings at the 2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit.
After completing SRMP training, attendees will be able to:
- Input site-based school data to develop a comprehensive schematic diagram and plans into the SRMP portal.
- Both identify and discuss vulnerabilities and training gaps in their individual plans.
- At least once annually initiate a full schoolwide tabletop exercise on the procedures documented in the SRMP portal.
To obtain the most beneficial training within the SRMP system, charter school personnel should ensure that their school has been loaded into the SRMP and that they have an active NCID and are able to log into SRMP. LEA personnel should make sure they can log into SRMP using their NCID.
If you are not able to log in, click here to try to reset your NCID password first.
Attendees are encouraged to bring a laptop, as they will receive technical guidance to ensure their plans meet the necessary state requirements. All sessions are the same.
For more information on SRMP training, send an email to CFSS Assistant Director-Operations Karen Everett.
Camp Book It is a summer reading program (June-August) for pre-K through sixth-grade students sponsored by Pizza Hut. Students can earn a certificate for a personal pan pizza once they meet their goal. For more information, visit bookitprogram.com.
Receiving a high score for funding from the School Safety Grant Program (contingent upon the passage of appropriations from the General Assembly) for public-school units is based in part on meeting legislative requirements, including having a complete and updated School Risk Management Plan, anonymous reporting system and panic alarm (hardwired or app). For more information, send an email to schoolsafetygrants@dpi.nc.gov.
Center for Safer Schools Executive Director Karen W. Fairley is touring North Carolina school districts and charter schools and would like to see anything they want to showcase regarding school safety. For school districts, this includes stops at an elementary school, a middle school and a high school. Fairley also would like to take time to talk with a small group of students.
Tours not completed during the 2023-24 school year will have priority next year. Thank you for your patience as she does what she can to get to as many public school units as possible.
2024 RISE Back to School Safety Summit
(Registration is free)
- Monday, July 29-Wednesday, July 31; Cape Fear Community College, 502 N. Front St., Wilmington: Register
The Center for Safer Schools welcomes newsletter submissions about school safety events from school districts and charter schools across North Carolina. Email your information and photos to CFSS Public Relations Specialist Charles Kinnin.
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