Zero tolerance policy. Most school districts have a zero tolerance policy in place for drug use, weapons on campus, sexual harassment, or all of the above. At their very core, zero tolerance policies make schools safer. However, a one-size-fits-all approach does not work well in all situations involving student misconduct. This article outlines…

In 1995, the Broward County (Florida) Public Schools initiated a safe-school program. The first step was to ensure collection of accurate, consistent, and timely data. This article describes the district's revised data-collection and incident-reporting system, and documents the program's effectiveness in improving safety. (MLH)

Evaluates a cooperative program established between police and the Akron Public Schools. Since 1991-92, the program has utilized off-duty police officers who become familiar with students, remove nonstudents from school buildings, intervene in criminal violations, and make classroom presentations. A schoolwide survey showed that police cooperation…

The Chesapeake (Virginia) Public Schools developed a strategic school-improvement plan with 178 recommendations representing certain goals: school safety, standards, effectiveness, efficiency, staff training, technology integration, community involvement, and facilities. The implementation process consisted of assigning responsibilities,…