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School safety pilot to debut in fall

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A school safety pilot program will find a home in three New Hanover County schools during the 2014-15 school year.

The program is an initiative of the safer schools task force led by District Attorney Ben David, Chief District Court Judge J.H. Corpening and FBI hostage rescue team founding member Larry Bonney.

The program was explained during a May 13 New Hanover County Board of Education meeting.

Five training sessions designed to instruct staff and faculty to recognize signs and create a culture of leadership and support for students will take place at Rachel Freeman School of Engineering, Williston Middle School and New Hanover High School.

David urged the board to begin considering ways to implement the program on a larger scale, saying the task force hopes the program will be implemented in New Hanover, Pender and Brunswick county schools following successful pilot programs.

“We wanted to start with some pilot sites to make sure we knew what we were talking about before we made that a practice throughout the district,” David said.

Superintendent Dr. Tim Markley said the three schools volunteered to participate in the pilot.

“This is where this next step has to happen. We want to go into the schools,” Bonney said. “Everybody in that school system has a responsibility to the children. Everybody in that school system probably sees those kids more during the day than their parents do.”

Bonney said schools often become the last place kids look for a safe and caring environment. The training sessions will provide observations and recommendations to help school officials establish that environment.

Topics discussed will include early signs of dysfunction and aggression, fostering a culture of respect, creating connections between adults and students and the role of law enforcement.

Bonney said the most important takeaway from the program is the need for relationships between adults and students.

“Absolutely the most important thing that can happen … [is] a positive relationship where an adult has taken notice of a child in need, in want, who is angry, who is hurting,” Bonney said.

A group of 25 local officials and representatives will work with Judge Steve Teske from Atlanta, who successfully implemented a similar protocol, on May 22. The task force plans to convene for additional summer meetings to assure a protocol and program are ready for implementation when the -2014-15 school year begins.

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