COOPERSVILLE, Mich. — There's a crisis response pamphlet in every classroom and office at Coopersville Area Public Schools.
The pamphlet covers all types of emergencies that could happen potentially during the school day.
Superintendent Matt Spencer sat down with FOX 17 Tuesday to discuss a critical part of school safety: risk assessment.
The district's risk assessment is 41 pages long. It does what cameras and locks on doors cannot: monitor student behavior and risk associated with concerning behavior.
“So if there’s a concerning behavior to staff, and there’s an office referral, then our administration at the building level initiates this process,” Spencer explained.
The process pulls together a team of professionals, including school counselors, the school resource officer and educators.
“All these team members have a conversation,” Spencer added.
Former members of the Oxford School Board said Monday that the district failed to implement the board's 8400 policy, which includes requirements for threat assessment based onrecommendations from the Department of Homeland Security and Secret Service.
At Coopersville, Spencer says they have a low threshold to assess risk and threats. They have the same 8400 policy Oxford has on paper, and at Coopersville, they say they put it to use.
"All this is for safety, for every student's safety," Spencer said.
The risk assessment brings parents into the conversation. It determines the seriousness of concerning behavior, like verbal threats or disturbing drawings. It assesses a student's access to weapons. Though not completely foolproof, it's at least something educators can do to try to prevent targeted violence.
“As a dad and as an educator, what happened in Oxford is my number one greatest fear,” Spencer said.
Rather than be frozen in fear, the threat assessment— in addition to active shooter training with a school resource officer, locks on every door and cameras throughout buildings— allows Spencer to know the district is doing everything it can.
“It’s somewhat disheartening that nothing is 100% foolproof, but I do believe school districts have an obligation to have a plan for safety preparedness and response and I feel very good about the work Coopersville has done,” Spencer said.
He says by the end of the May 2023 school year, all staff at Coopersville, including bus drivers and coaches, will be trained on targeted violence warning signs and procedures. For Spencer, it's a sad but necessary reality as a school administrator in 2022.
“I think this might be the most important, is communicating to staff, students and families, if you’re concerned about anything you’re seeing or hearing— air on the side of caution— go to a staff member you trust— and communicate what you’re worried about,” Spencer said.
Communicating those concerns allows the district to start looking into the problem, one Spencer says will be taken seriously, investigated and addressed.
Not every district has a threat assessment policy. You can find out more under most districts' "Board of Education" section of their website, and looking into "Policy and Procedures."
Former members of the Oxford School Board say having the policy simply isn't enough. Every parent must also ask their school board and school district how the policy is implemented— because there is no state law that requires districts to assess student behavior for risk of targeted violence.
