House Homeland Security Subcommittee Issues Testimony From New Jersey Department of Education
"Good morning Chairman Donovan, Ranking Member Payne, and distinguished members of the subcommittee. I am
"I wish to convey to the Subcommittee, the regrets of our Commissioner, Dr.
"As you may know,
Administrative Code and Legislative Requirements
"To that end, the NJDOE, along with its partners and stakeholders have been seeking to improve student safety through a multi-faceted and student-centered approach that builds positive school cultures and socio-emotional learning in addition to the security postures of school buildings within the K-12 realm. Together with our sister state agencies, including the Departments of Community Affairs, Health, Children and Families, Law and Public Safety,
"For example, current administrative code requires districts to have written, comprehensive all-hazards school safety and security plans. These emergency operating plans are the cornerstones which are relied upon in emergencies; and from which planning, training, and drills are based. Legislative mandate also requires all schools to conduct a school security drill each month, in addition to the mandatory monthly fire drill. This may well represent the most robust school security drill schedule in the nation. Furthermore, a number of recent directives were passed which further enhance school security efforts. Many of these resulted directly from the work of the
"In our view, of the 14 issues studied by the task force; and of the 41 recommendations offered in their final report, the establishment of the
NJDOE School Security Efforts
"Through the
"Our unannounced drill observation initiative has provided opportunities for members of our office to collaborate directly with schools. Since the 2014-2015 school year, we have conducted over 850 such observations. This outreach has led to an increasing number of requests for technical assistance, which have resulted in members of our office providing professional development sessions for school staff and presentations to parent and board members, and other audiences. Our office has provided site-specific security observations, school safety and security plan reviews, and drill guidance. We've responded to 205 technical assistance requests, provided 121 presentations to educational organizations, and conducted 91 training assemblies. Just last week, the Governor underlined the State's ongoing commitment to school safety by signing a State budget that significantly increased the State's investment in Security Aid, allowing districts the flexibility to support school safety initiatives that fit the needs of their students.
"While I can speak primarily to the Department's on-going work regarding school security, a holistic approach to ensuring the safety, including preventive efforts, is vital. The
Partnerships
"We, along with our partner agencies understand that no single entity bears the responsibility, nor the possesses the capability to keep our students safe. There must be a concerted, comprehensive, continual effort to make and keep our schools as secure as possible. We have partnered with
"Finally, in an effort to learn from our colleagues around the nation who are all seeking to improve school safety and security in the wake of the track act of school violence at
Conclusion
"Despite what seems to be a mounting tide of senseless violence occurring within our schools; schools overall, remain relatively safe places for our children. However, we cannot remain idly by and allow injury, both emotional and physical, and deaths to occur among our students. We must reject that this is the new normal, stem, and turn back the tide of school violence. We must pledge to do more.
"Paraphrasing Commissioner Repollet: "...while we cannot control individual student behavior we [must continue] to provide guidance and support through training and resources to the school districts in order to identify promising practices and effective preventative strategies." This has been our mission, and we, along with our partners and stakeholders in school security will continue to do so to the best of our abilities.
"I again thank you for the opportunity to address this esteemed subcommittee."
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