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NEW ORLEANS – The Safe Schools Louisiana Anonymous Reporting App, a statewide program that safeguards more than 500 schools across the state through a free anonymous reporting platform, examined the overall tip content and categorization of anonymous tips for the summer and first month of the 2022 school year (Dates: June 1 – August 31). Due to the stressors placed on Louisiana children in recent years by pandemics, crime trends, the Uvalde school shooting, and further environmental factors, the administrative team supporting the app shares its findings for the benefit of students, parents, and faculty to provide the safest environment for learning.

The administrative team behind the app at Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans acknowledges that a three-month sample size may not be representative of all schools statewide and should be observed cautiously as all schools serviced have not been in session for a full month in 2022. The Safe Schools LA app and program are a complimentary resource for school communities that provide students the ability to anonymously communicate about a pressing school, criminal, or mental health concern.

As of August 31, 2022, tip categorization by reporting students involved the following “event type” upon submission:

32% – “Bullying,” “Cyber Bullying,” or “Harassment”

18% – “Vaping”

7% – “Guns,” “Knife,” or “Shooting”

7% – “Suicide,” “Suicide Threats”

Remainder – “Fighting,” “Ditching,” “Drugs,” or “Anger Issues”

Finding that bullying is often a factor correlated with suicidal thoughts in students and that the advent of social media has now made cyber bullying an often inescapable part of the school experience, the findings from the summer and first month of school should be considered prior to National Suicide Prevention Week which begins September 4, 2022, and National Bullying Prevention Month which begins October 1, 2022. The team at Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans encourages honest conversations with parents and administrators of students about these topics.

During the 2021-2022 academic school year, students frequently reported bullying or cyberbullying of which the administrators had not been aware. 16 tips involving guns were received in that time as well as 10 tips regarding discussion of “planned school attacks.” Nonviolent tips such as suicidal thoughts or threats were also reported and immediately addressed by predetermined response teams in each school district.

Developed by Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans in partnership with the Louisiana Department of Education and Louisiana State Police, the app has grown from a regional program to a statewide program in the last two years. Schools and districts may still sign up for deployment in the 2022-2023 academic year through the SafeSchoolsLA.com website. Training and school promotional materials for use of the app are also available for free once onboarding of the school or school system is complete which can be initiated in less than 48 hours.

Safe Schools Louisiana Free Smartphone App:

Download the app for Apple Devices:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/crime-stoppers-gno-safe-school/id1268369585

Download the app for Google Devices:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.p3tips.gnocampus&hl=en_US&gl=US

School Violence STATISTICS:

• 100,000 students carry a gun to school each day
• 28% of youths who carry weapons have witnessed violence at home
• Among students, homicide perpetrators were more than twice as likely as homicide victims to have been bullied
• More youth violence occurs on school grounds as opposed to on the way to school.
• 1/3 of students surveyed said they heard another student threaten to kill someone.
• Teachers are also assaulted, robbed & bullied. 84 crimes per 1,000 teachers per year.

Reference: Bureau of Justice Statistics – School Crime & Safety (via NVEEE)

Endorsement (March 2021):

“The Crimestoppers Safe Schools Louisiana App is for all students in public, private, and charter schools, grades 6 through 12. The Crimestoppers Safe Schools Louisiana App is aimed at preventing an event from occurring through anonymous reporting. The app allows students to share what they know with people who can prevent the preventable…”

– Louisiana Department of Education (Superintendent) and Louisiana State Police (Colonel)

About Safe Schools LA

Crimestoppers “Safe Schools Louisiana” is an anonymous tip reporting solution designed for students, parents, and teachers to submit secure and anonymous concerns about campus or campus events. Whether it’s drugs, bullying, mental health concerns, alcohol, sexting, or other related crimes, speaking up is the right thing to do. Through the app, a student can leave a tip, check tip status, add more information to existing tips and create new tips. They are even able to upload photos, screenshots, and videos. This is all accomplished by using the assigned “tip” number and password. Tips are monitored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! There is even a feature for two-way dialogue with a Crimestoppers employee. The app is powered by the P3 Campus platform which is used in over 20,000 schools and by over 10 million students across the United States. Once vetted, the assigned representatives are immediately notified for engagement. When there is a life safety concern, the entire Safe School team is contacted for immediate response and intervention.

 

About Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans

Crimestoppers, Inc. is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit serving a nine-parish region of Southeastern Louisiana representing approximately 1,300,000 citizens and the respective law enforcement agencies. To foster a safe community, our mission is to prevent and solve crime by providing educational crime prevention programs for youth and adults, and by assisting Law Enforcement Agencies, victims of crime and their families, in identifying and arresting criminal suspects through anonymous tips by citizens. Crimestoppers, Inc., has worked in schools within the Greater Metropolitan New Orleans area and River Parishes since 2006 and has a proven track record of providing crime prevention training and information gathering, including the original tip hotline.

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