School safety is a priority for nearly every superintendent. The harder challenge is turning that commitment into consistent action across classrooms, campuses, departments, and thousands of employees.
A district may have a comprehensive emergency operations plan, dedicated security personnel, and investments in safety technology. But without clear leadership, staff participation, and consistent implementation, those resources may not deliver the preparedness district leaders expect.
During the AASA and CENTEGIX webinar, Safer Schools, Every Day: How Superintendents Build a Culture of Safety, three education and safety leaders explored what it takes to make school safety part of a district's everyday operations.
Moderated by Dr. Roderick Sams, CENTEGIX Chief Development Officer, the discussion featured Jeffrey D. Harrison, superintendent of Brecksville-Broadview Heights City Schools in Ohio; Van Ayres, superintendent of Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida; and Max Schachter, founder and executive director of Safe Schools for Alex.
Their insights reveal how superintendents can move from planning to action by making safety a leadership responsibility, involving every employee, investing in practical safety solutions, establishing consistent procedures, and maintaining accountability.
1. How Can Superintendents Make School Safety a District-Wide Priority?
For Harrison, school safety leadership begins with a fundamental shift in how superintendents approach their responsibilities. “I think our responsibility, and coming from the central office lens, is to make it a priority, and it's a priority in every conversation.”
Harrison explained that safety should not be treated as a separate initiative or an occasional agenda item. Instead, it should influence decisions throughout the district, from staffing and resource allocation to school improvement priorities. He described safety as an underlying consideration in the work district leaders do every day.
Ayres reinforced that perspective while discussing the challenge of leading Hillsborough County Public Schools, a district with nearly 250 schools and more than 200,000 students. “Nothing else matters. And that to our superintendents who are listening, that has to come from the top.”
Ayres explained that consistent communication helps make safety part of a district's organizational identity. When employees and families regularly hear that safety matters, that expectation becomes more visible across the school community.
This approach also supports educational outcomes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identifies school connectedness—a sense that adults and peers care about students—as an important factor associated with attendance, academic achievement, and student well-being.
Harrison made a similar connection during the webinar, emphasizing that students need to feel safe and supported before schools can fully accomplish their academic goals.
His broader perspective on why school safety cannot wait reflects the same principle: school safety leadership is foundational to the district's educational mission, not separate from it.
2. How Do Superintendents Get Every Employee Involved in School Safety?
A district's safety culture cannot depend exclusively on administrators, school resource officers, or employees with security responsibilities.
Harrison emphasized that every employee has a role to play. “No matter if they're superintendent, bus driver, classroom teacher, or third-shift custodian, we all have a role in school safety.”
At Brecksville-Broadview Heights, that responsibility includes everyday actions such as checking doors, recognizing when students are struggling, and creating an environment where students feel a sense of belonging.
The U.S. Department of Education's school climate resources similarly emphasize the importance of supportive learning environments and involving the broader school community in improvement efforts. But involving employees also means giving them practical ways to act.
How Safety Technology Can Empower Employees to Act
Harrison shared how his district's implementation of the CENTEGIX CrisisAlert wearable panic button helped employees take greater ownership of school safety.
Initially, CrisisAlert badges were distributed to employees working inside school buildings. The district subsequently extended access to bus drivers, who could use the badges while on school campuses during arrival and dismissal.
Although the system was not intended to provide coverage while drivers traveled their routes, it gave them a way to initiate an emergency alert while they were on campus.
Harrison explained that employees became more engaged when they had a direct way to request help and initiate established emergency procedures. “Everybody owns it and it's no longer just on a shelf collecting dust.”
That experience demonstrates why accessible safety technology can make school safety everyone's responsibility. It also illustrates the importance of staff adoption. Even well-designed school safety solutions depend on employees understanding when and how to use them.
For superintendents, the goal is not simply to distribute equipment. It is to ensure employees have the tools, training, and confidence to fulfill their safety responsibilities.
3. How Can District Leaders Turn School Safety Investments Into Action?
Superintendents face difficult financial decisions. Competing demands for instructional materials, staffing, infrastructure, and student services can make school safety investments challenging to prioritize.
Harrison addressed that reality directly during the webinar.
When his district was considering CENTEGIX, he recalled framing the investment for his board of education by comparing it with other routine expenses. “Are you telling me paper towels are more important than school safety?”
Harrison acknowledged that the comparison was tongue-in-cheek. His larger point was that district leaders should examine how they allocate resources and recognize safety as a fundamental need.
The question is not whether schools should eliminate other essential expenditures. It is whether safety receives the same thoughtful consideration as other major district priorities.
That perspective is particularly relevant when districts evaluate aging infrastructure or technology that may no longer meet operational needs.
For example, Harrison has also described how his district reconsidered investments in aging public-address systems while evaluating ways to strengthen emergency communication.
District leaders should assess whether prospective school safety solutions address actual response challenges, are accessible to employees, and can be implemented consistently.
The CISA K–12 School Security Guide encourages schools to assess vulnerabilities and consider layered security measures appropriate to their environments.
Similarly, the U.S. Department of Justice's FY2026 School Violence Prevention Program identifies eligible investments in school security improvements, including technologies that support emergency notification. Eligibility and available funding depend on the specific program and application requirements.
Evaluating school safety technology's total cost of ownership can help districts look beyond the initial purchase price. Implementation, training, maintenance, and ongoing usability also matter.
And when considering the return on investment of a school alert system, leaders should examine how effectively it supports staff participation and emergency response—not simply whether the technology has been purchased.
4. How Do Superintendents Create Consistent Safety Practices Across Schools?
Establishing a consistent safety culture becomes more complicated as districts grow.
Ayres described how Hillsborough County Public Schools works to maintain shared expectations across its large network of campuses. One approach is frequent communication.
During the webinar, Ayres discussed a school safety newsletter sent to families, including a message from the superintendent emphasizing the district's commitment to safety.
He also described how students receive training on Florida's FortifyFL reporting application at the beginning of the school year. These efforts reinforce expectations for different members of the school community.
The district's work with CENTEGIX also supports consistent emergency notification procedures. Ayres explained that employees across the district wear CrisisAlert badges and understand their role in requesting help. “And the key for us has become that standardization across.”
Although Ayres was speaking conversationally, the point was clear: consistent tools and expectations help employees know what to do, regardless of the campus where they work.
The SchoolSafety.gov emergency planning guidance emphasizes defining responsibilities, training personnel, and reviewing emergency operations plans regularly. For school safety solutions to support district-wide consistency, employees need reliable ways to communicate an emergency and understand the procedures that follow.
This is especially important when different safety devices communicate in different ways. District leaders should evaluate how alerts reach staff and responders, how location information is communicated, and whether the system supports established protocols. Effective implementation of a connected safety platform should also account for training and operational readiness across campuses.
The objective is a district where employees understand the same fundamental expectations, even when their buildings and daily responsibilities differ.
5. How Can Superintendents Sustain School Safety Improvements Over Time?
School safety implementation is not complete when a district adopts a policy, conducts a training session, or deploys new technology.
Schachter, whose son Alex was killed in the 2018 Parkland school shooting, reminded the webinar audience that school safety requires continual attention. “You're never done with this issue and you're never at 100%.” He encouraged superintendents to acknowledge vulnerabilities and remain responsive to changing challenges.
Ayres described how Hillsborough County reinforces that commitment through annual district-led school safety audits, in addition to state reviews.
Those assessments help identify issues involving doors, fencing, and campus entry procedures while reinforcing the district's expectations.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's improvement planning guidance similarly recommends using findings from emergency exercises to develop corrective actions and monitor progress. The U.S. Department of Education's school climate resources offer another way to understand how students and staff experience their school environments.
For superintendents, sustaining progress means remaining engaged after the initial investment. Leaders must continue communicating expectations, supporting staff, and addressing gaps as they emerge. That ongoing commitment helps turn a district's school safety plan into a living part of its operations.
From School Safety Priorities to Everyday Action
Throughout the AASA and CENTEGIX webinar, Harrison, Ayres, and Schachter returned to a shared principle: school safety requires more than good intentions.
Harrison emphasized leadership, employee participation, and thoughtful investments. Ayres demonstrated how communication and standardized practices can support a large district. Schachter challenged superintendents to remain vigilant and continually strengthen preparedness.
Together, their perspectives show that effective school safety leadership means aligning people, processes, and technology around a shared responsibility.
District-wide action begins when superintendents make safety a consistent priority—and continues when every employee understands how to contribute.
Watch Safer Schools, Every Day: How Superintendents Build a Culture of Safety to hear the full discussion.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can superintendents implement school safety solutions across an entire district?
Superintendents can support district-wide implementation by establishing clear safety priorities, involving employees across roles, selecting practical safety solutions, providing consistent training, and reviewing implementation regularly. Leadership communication and employee participation help make safety part of everyday district operations.
Why is employee participation important to school safety?
Employees across a district may identify concerns, recognize emergencies, or be positioned to request assistance. When teachers, custodians, transportation employees, and other staff understand their responsibilities and have accessible ways to act, they can contribute to a stronger school safety culture.
How can district leaders maintain consistent school safety practices across multiple campuses?
District leaders can establish shared emergency procedures, provide standardized training and communication tools, communicate expectations regularly, and conduct ongoing reviews. Individual campuses may have different needs, but employees should understand the district's core safety expectations and response procedures.