The “Safe + Sound” system, which became available March 21 to K-12 schools in Iowa, is accessible to students, school staff, parents and any other concerned community members, according to a news release from the Iowa Department of Education.
Don Schnitker, Iowa School Safety Bureau chief, said Wednesday that students and faculty in about 700 of the state’s 1,400 school buildings have already signed up for this free initiative, which is available to all K-12 communities, public and private.
Here’s how it works: People can access the service by downloading the mobile app via Apple Store, Google Play or the SafeandSoundIowa.gov website, as well as through other web browsing devices or by telephone using a 1-800 number listed on the website. There are no technology requirements beyond the computers, tablets or phones that schools, faculty, staff and students would already use.
Dispatchers at a 24/7 call center collect information from tipsters on a confidential basis. The dispatcher report then goes to designated contacts, which can include school administrators, law enforcement agencies or emergency responders. The proper authority determines an appropriate course of action before closing the report. Depending on the situation, the goal is to help at-risk students before they can cause harm to themselves or others, Schnitker said in an interview with Government Technology.
“This is different than 911 because kids are more comfortable being anonymous,” Schnitker said. “If they are not sure about something, they won’t get all the questions dismissing their concern as rumors or speculation. Plus, they’d rather text than call.”
Use cases for this system could include a call about a friend who doesn’t have enough food or adequate housing, a distraught teenager that mentioned thoughts of suicide to their peers, or information on a planned fight in the bathroom after third period, Schnitker said.
“We did have a case of a school fight,” he said, noting that school employees intervened before the scrap could take place. “It never happened.”
Districts that do not participate in Safe + Sound (by not extending the sign-up information to staff, students and parents) can still be notified of any threats to their schools. Administrators across the state are encouraged to provide a completed school safety contact form to the Governor’s School Safety Bureau.
So far, Iowa Safe + Sound dispatchers have received an average of three to four calls or messages per day, and that number is expected to increase as more school communities sign on. Schnitker said he anticipates some “misallocations” of this resource, and it would not surprise anyone if there are cases where students put forth a false claim about a peer as a prank or out of spite. Technology is in place to track down bogus tipsters if need be.
“We are hoping not to get any bomb threats,” Schnitker said. “But if it is misused, we know what to do.”
He said Iowa Safe + Sound is based on an existing school safety tip line in Colorado. The system costs about $1.5 million and is part of a larger statewide Governor’s School Safety Bureau initiative.
“With the school shootings, they were looking at this before 2019, and more funding became available in 2022,” Schnitker said. “She (Gov. Kim Reynolds) decided to go for a full-court press.”
