Safe Schools Week

		Safe Schools Week is October 16-22

Students who feel safe are free to learn. This is apparent every day in Kentucky classrooms as educators make sure no child is left behind. But safe schools exist in safe communities, and to bring communities together, the Kentucky Center for School Safety (KCSS) announces 2005 Kentucky Safe Schools Week. Scheduled for October 16-22, 2005, KCSS encourages students, parents, educators and the community to realize that Safe Schools Begin with Me!

KCSS is taking Kentucky Safe Schools Week virtual for 2005, said Doris Settles, Director of the KCSS Information Clearinghouse housed at the University of Kentucky College of Education. The Clearinghouse is in charge of the Web site, www.kysafeschools.org, which gathers information about school safety and provides links to resources for parents and educators about all facets of school safety. The Pledge Against School Violence is now available online. Parents, students, educators and community members are encouraged to take the pledge and make the following commitments:

To understand that guns do not solve problems or disputes
To refuse to participate in or tolerate bullying or violent behaviors
To have the courage to tell an adult when I hear about guns or violence in my school.

National studies prove that schools are safe places to be, reiterates KCSS Director Jon Akers, Kentucky teachers and administrators make every effort to create caring environments for their students, but there is more that needs to be done.

The KCSS encourages all state citizens to focus on awareness, prevention and cooperation during Kentucky Safe Schools Week.

Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher will kick off the week by signing a proclamation declaring the third week in October 2005 Kentucky Safe Schools Week. KET3 will rebroadcast the event to schools for closed circuit television. The signing will be followed by a press conference featuring Jon Akers, executive director of the Kentucky Center for School Safety, the Honorable Greg VanTatenhove, US Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Linda France, deputy commissioner for the Kentucky Department of Education, and Patty Young, Kentucky PTA president.

Kentucky’s observance of Safe Schools Week complements a national campaign sponsored by the National School Safety Center. The National Pledge Against Gun Violence Week also corresponds with Safe Schools Week in Kentucky.

For more information, visit www.kysafeschools.org or contact the Kentucky Center for School Safety Clearinghouse at (859) 257-9105 or toll free at (877) 805-4277.