Anonymous option

Use the app.

Visit the website.

Or call.

They’re all anonymous, and they all accomplish the same goal — saying something.

Jay School Corporation is in the process of implementing the Say Something – Anonymous Reporting System for providing tips on behavior that may indicate a school safety issue.

“One of the things we’re trying to do is give better tools to kids,” said Jay Schools superintendent Jeremy Gulley.

Rollout of the system began Thursday evening with a training session for the public led by Scott Lowry, representing Sandy Hook Promise, in the auditorium at Jay County High School. High school students were trained Friday, and middle school students will be trained when classes resume after they were canceled today because of inclement weather.

The system offers several options, all anonymous, for reporting behavior that may be a cause for concern.

One of those is a cellphone app, which is partially an effort to reach students on the devices they use to communicate most frequently. The app can be downloaded by searching for “Say Something” in the App Store or on Google Play.

After creating a four-digit pin number — no personal information is required — those using the app select a school with which they are associated.

They can then make a report or use the app to call the reporting hotline.

Other options for using the system are visiting the website — saysomething.net — or calling (844) 5-SAYNOW, which translates to (844) 572-9669.

“We basically give them a voice without a face,” said Lowry, a former police officer who has been involved in school security for 15 years, during his presentation. 

“That’s what an anonymous reporting system is.”

Tips that are submitted go directly to Say Something’s crisis center in Miami. They are evaluated by counselors who have an undergraduate degree, at least three years of experience and 500-plus hours of training.

Those counselors decide the severity of the situation. “Life safety” tips, those that indicate a threat on student safety, are forwarded to law enforcement and school officials immediately. In the case of a tip that does not involve life safety, school administrators will be notified between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Local law enforcement and school officials will then address the issues as they deem appropriate. When a situation is resolved, school officials document how it was handled and the ensuing result.

Lowry told the about 20 in attendance at the public training sessions that he believes school safety has little to do with getting guns off the streets or putting them in the hands of school employees.

“It is about creating a culture in the building of safety and security,” he added. “And that is done by educating the kids on how they can take care of their own. How they can look out after one another. And how they can provide help to one another.

“(Say Something) teaches them to look for the warning signs and signals of somebody that’s struggling. To take it serious when you hear somebody … And finally to say something.

“It saves lives, bottom line. It’s going to create a safer community.”

Those who provide tips remain anonymous with the exception of a few situations. Anonymity is waived, via the Say Something user agreement, if it is used for unintended purposes such as “jokes” or hoax tips. Anonymity can also be broken if the individual making the tip is suicidal or otherwise personally in crisis.

In addition to the presentation about Say Something, superintendent Jeremy Gulley, in response to a question, spoke about other safety measures Jay School Corporation has implemented since the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine’s Day 2018. 

JCHS also had a threat situation in March, resulting in additional security. It turned out to be a “joke.”

Jay Schools have since placed ballistic film on the glass in doors and windows at all of its schools, created and/or started on plans to create secure entrances at each building, implemented the use of metal detectors on a random basis and formed a countywide threat assessment team. Trained and screened school employees have access to a firearm, which is kept in a biometrically controlled safe, in case of an attack.

The corporation was approved in October for a $500,000 loan for safety improvements, plans for which included purchase and implementation of visitor management software, a communication system and cameras that will be integrated with local law enforcement and secure doors. It is also continuing to work with the county in an effort to form a full-time school resource officer position.

“We are really taking all of this very seriously,” said Gulley.

“We are not perfect,” he added. “We’re just trying to be better. We’re trying to change procedures and get better.”