Noting that one of the Jonesboro accused allegedly threatened another student with a knife the day before the shooting, and that even that extreme act apparently did not inspire anyone to make even an anonymous report, Savino recalled that a student at a school using the re-entry program brought a knife to school and was quickly reported by another student. The knife was confiscated and the student was immediately suspended. We teach students mediation and problem-solving skills, and we are strict about not letting unresolved conflicts fester. Lipsky said students' perceptions of what is a problem and source of pressure often differ from adults'. Someone will say something that isn't true about someone else.
Many states have their own mediation and counseling services.
Arkansas, the state where the shootings occurred, has a counselor in every school, said Margaret Preston, director of communications at the state's department of education. But, in Arkansas and in most other states, how much the counselors involve themselves with the personal and discipline needs of students varies from school to school, she said. Preston said Arkansas also offers several peer counseling programs, peer mediation and other support services but, again, these are at the discretion of individual schools. There are a number of programs where a student can report something anonymously. But those are instituted at a state level.