America's Safe School Week

New York, NY, October 18, 2006 --(PR.com)-- October 15-21 is America’s Safe Schools Week. This week is dedicated to the importance of key safety points in our nation’s schools. “Significant progress is being made to ensure that all of our nation's schools are safe, secure and productive,” says Ron Stephens, Executive Director for the National School Safety Center (NSSC).

With the recent round of multiple school shootings, school safety is on every parent’s and every student’s mind. America’s Safe Schools Week is used to emphasize the importance of safety in and around the schools. “NSSC's goal in this campaign is to motivate key education and law enforcement policymakers, as well as students, parents and community residents, to vigorously advocate school safety.” The NSSC’s definition of school safety consists of keeping the campus crime free, keeping student attendance up, and improving discipline.

The NSSC also suggests that it is not just up to the schools and authorities to keep children safe. There is a lot that each parent can do to help ensure their child’s safety. The NSSC highly recommends that every parent should be aware of who is living around their children’s schools, bus stops, parks, and school routes. You can do this by checking out a free sex offender locating and mapping website like FamilyBeacon.com. All you need to do is type in either the address or the ZIP code of the area you want to check, and the site shows a map of the area pinpointing where convicted sex offenders reside.

Every parent can also help by participating with your children’s school, either in the PTA, or volunteer with the school directly. The public can help each school develop a safety advisory group. This way more emphasis can be put on the safety of children as well as a great education.

###