Traditional calendar schools begin next week, and student safety will be top of mind.
Wake County schools are now using the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System. It was created by parents whose children were killed in the Sandy Hook massacre and has grown nationwide.
The app provides "a holistic solution to school prevention... featuring (a) educational program, easy-to-use technology, ongoing curriculum, and sustainability support." It teaches students, teachers, and administrators how to recognize the signs of at-risk behaviors, especially within social media.
It also provides a 24-7 anonymous tip line. Students and staff can submit tips online, through an app, or by calling the hotline. All tips are sent to designated school leaders, and when necessary to local 911 dispatchers, who respond to protect student safety.
Cumberland County Schools has been using 'Say Something' since 2020, and the district said it has helped better protect students and care for their mental health.
"We have had a number of cases where children or kids were suicidal or express a self-harm and some of their peers used See Something Say Something to actually bring that to our attention, and so counselors were able to get involved and actually have some hospitalizations to intervene in that," Hall said.
Cumberland County Schools says an anonymous, digital tip line has helped the district better protect students and care for their mental health.
Safety remains a top priority for the state's largest school district as it rolls out the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System.
"I think there are some threats. I think you can't eliminate everything," said Wake County Schools parent Amy Hellmers.
While she has faith in the Wake County school district, she wonders if schools are the safest place for kids.
"I would like for this to not be a reality, but we've seen incidents happen during school hours," she said.
According to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the anonymous tool is already being used in 110 of the state's 115 school districts. Data shows tips have more than doubled between the 2021 and 2023 school year:
- 2021-22 total tips: 7,976
- 2022-23 total tips: 10,581
- 2023-24 total tips: 15,222
- Total tips since inception: 39,449
"We have signs in restrooms with a scanning code so students can make an anonymous tip wherever," said Herbert Akins Middle School principal Anne Marie Adkins. "We've had about 12 tips already coming in different categories."
The tips go to highly trained counselors at the national office in Miami who relay the issue depending on its nature to school leaders.
Students will watch a 26-minute video on how to use the app properly.
"They are taught what are the warning signs and behaviors and what do people need to look for," said Corliss Thompson-Drew, WCPSS Director of Psychology.
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