This week's safe schools snippets

Study: Bullied kids showing up in school nurses’ offices

Elementary school children who were victims of peer bullying — along with the bullies themselves — made more frequent visits to a school nurse’s office with complaints of physical illnesses and injuries than their other classmates, according to new research out of Kansas. Read more in HealthDay News.

Boy Scout garden to promote peace

Former Governor’s Ranch Elementary student and Boy Scout Matthew Meyer is on a mission – to spread peace in the community by memorializing past school staff in a Peace Garden.

Summit Ridge Middle School, along with his Boy Scout unit and a team of parent volunteers, will build the GRE Peace Garden.  Staff members who passed away will be represented by the beautiful flower garden.

The garden project is part of Matthew’s work to become an Eagle Scout.  He chose this project to positively impact the entire community.

Student: Columbine-style threats on Facebook a joke

COLORADO SPRINGS – A Palmer High School student who made Columbine-style threats on Facebook was asked not to come to school on Wednesday, police said. Check out the 7NEWS report.

Public school worker background check heads to state Senate

Any contractor who does work for a public school will have to get a background check first under a bill headed to the state Senate. The Senate Education Committee passed the measure unanimously Thursday afternoon. It requires all contractors, including electricians, plumbers, bus drivers and janitors to pass a background check. Check out the CBS4 report.

Jury deliberating case of coach accused of sex assault

BROOMFIELD – A jury is deliberating the case of a former Broomfield High School teacher and wrestling coach charged with having a sexual relationship with a student when she was 17. Check out the 7NEWS report.

A crusade of kindness to stop bullying, teen suicide

DENVER – Suicide in the second leading cause of death for teens in Colorado. Some studies show that more than 50 percent of those incidents are directly related to bullying. See the 9NEWS story.

Teen facing arson charge for classroom fire

GRAND JUNCTION – A teenager is facing arson charges for setting a classroom at Bookcliff Middle School on fire, according to KJCT-TV.

Denver  principal accused of not notifying police of gun threat

Last Thursday at Edison Elementary School, an eight-year-old boy, who parents say has been causing problems all school year, allegedly threatened to bring a gun to school and shoot another child. See the KWGN2 News report.

Man chased by cops races through school

COLORADO SPRINGS – A fleeing suspect was arrested Wednesday after dashing through Madison Elementary School in central Colorado Springs, prompting the school to go on emergency lockdown. Read more in the Denver Post.

Police investigate threats by Edison Elementary student

Denver Police are investigating an incident at Edison Elementary in north Denver in which a student is suspected of making a threat and administrators are accused of not reporting it. Read more in the Denver Post.

Springs teen arrested in vandalism of church, school

COLORADO SPRINGS – Colorado Springs police said they arrested a 17-year-old boy accused of vandalizing a church and high school early Sunday while under the influence of alcohol and possibly drugs. Watch the 7NEWS report.

Colorado OKs school safety measure

On Monday, the Colorado House of Representatives voted unanimously in favor of Senate Bill 11-173, the first bill in the nation to establish that communications interoperability is a necessary part of a school safety, readiness, and incident management plan. The bill also establishes a partnership between schools and local or regional homeland security personnel. Read more on PR News.

Bullet narrowly misses teacher in Jeffco H.S. classroom

EDGEWATER – A bullet came flying through a classroom window and narrowly missed a teacher sitting at a desk at Jefferson High School in Edgewater Wednesday. Check out the KWGN report.

Inspiring messages appear around school

FORT COLLINS – Anonymous notes have been showing up on the walls of Bauder Elementary school, but their messages aren’t the kind teachers frown upon. The notes that have been showing up for the last few weeks all have inspirational messages on them. Get more information on 9NEWS.

Connie Cooper, a fourth-grade teacher at Bauder, says the student who’s placing the anonymous notes got the idea from a newspaper article printed in Buffalo, New York. It tells the story of a middle school student who tried to combat the teasing and bullying in the school by posting positive notes around the school, in an effort to make students smile and feel good about themselves.

Anti-bullying measure clears Senate committee

In an almost empty Capitol parking lot late Thursday afternoon, Sen. Pat Steadman stood alone reflecting on more than two hours of emotional testimony from people who, like himself, have been bullyied throughout their lives. That testimony came during an emotional hearing of House Bill 1254, which aims to reduce bullying in schools and communities across the state. Check out the KWGN report.

 

About our First Person series:

First Person is where Chalkbeat features personal essays by educators, students, parents, and others trying to improve public education. Read our submission guidelines here.