Safe schools do not happen automatically. They require the collaboration and support of students, staff, parents, and the community. Every school district ultimately pays for safe schools, either now through safety measures, or later through litigation. And whenever a suit arises from a serious incident involving school personnel on a school campus, you can be certain that the plaintiff's attorney will name not only the person who committed the act, but also the administrators and school board members, who are responsible for the supervision and management of all school employees. The good news is that preventing problems is usually cheaper, and easier, than cleaning up after them.
School violence is incompatible with the educational mission.
Although this idea might seem obvious, it is nevertheless critical to place school safety on the education agenda. A sound mission statement supporting the goal of safe and drug-free schools provides the legal basis for school board policies that work toward meeting that goal. In recent years, for instance, courts have upheld actions by school officials that are consistent with the district's mission statement. When school safety was not included in the mission statement, the actions school officials take to keep their districts safe may be more difficult to defend. Craft individual safe-school plans.