App serves as anonymous reporting tool to improve school safety in Nebraska

Nebraska education officials say an app aimed to keep kids safe is having a positive impact in the state.

Students, parents and school staff have made about 3,500 reports through the Safe2Help Nebraska app since it rolled out in 2020. The program offers an anonymous way for individuals to report concerning incidents, like bullying and self-harm.

This week is National School Safety Week. Jay Martin, Nebraska Department of Education safety and security director, said the Safe2Help app is one way the state is improving student security.

“It creates that anonymous reporting where kids are able to report this stuff without basically having any recourse coming back on them,” Martin said. “Once you market and stuff, and kids start to understand how to use it, it just became a program where it's saved lives.”

When a student makes a report either through the app or by calling, it goes to Boys Town in Omaha where a crisis counselor is available 24/7. The counselor then decides the best course of action. If it’s an emergency, the report will go to law enforcement. Non-emergencies go to a threat assessment team at the student’s school. That five-person team typically has an administrator, licensed mental health professional or counselor, law enforcement and other school staff.

If a school hasn’t opted in to the program, the report goes directly to law enforcement. Martin said the app covers about 75% of students across the state, which is an increase from about 40% when he started two years ago.

The state education department has four pillars for school safety: prevention, preparedness, response and recovery. Martin said the app fits in the first two - prevention and preparedness.

“A lot of times, it's not just helping a victim, it's potentially helping somebody who might be a perpetrator in this get the help they need, because sometimes they're the ones that might have the mental health issues that need to be addressed," Martin said.

Martin said the most common reports are bullying/cyberbullying, drugs and suicide. About 80% of the calls are situations the school can respond to.

Martin said he encourages schools to promote safe relationships between teachers and students as another way to prevent dangerous situations.

“When kids are connected to an adult, they're less likely to go down other paths,” Martin said.

Martin said the state and districts are constantly working on ways to make schools safer.

“Schools are one of the safest places to be,” Martin said. “The problem is, unfortunately, when you have that school shooting, everybody thinks that it's not a safe place, but you got to think about all the schools that really aren't having an issue that day.”

The state is rolling out a self-paced online program for schools to develop emergency operation plans. Currently, school officials have to go through a two-day training. Martin said the new program will make it more accessible to schools.