Politics & Government

School Safety Reforms Central to President Obama's Gun Control Proposal

The Twinsburg schools work hard to stay up-to-date on safety policies and procedures.

President Barack Obama presented a sweeping set of gun control recommendations last week, with many focused directly on increasing safety measures in schools.

According to the Politics K-12 blog, the proposals signal a shift in federal priorities—the proposals ask for increases in school safety and mental health counseling funding, areas the administration has sought to cut in the budget in recent years.

Check out the Politics K-12 post for a more in-depth look at the proposals, which includes creating model emergency response plans for institutions like schools and providing $50 million for training for professionals like social workers and counselors who plan to work with young adults.

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The full text of the plan can also be found on the White House website.

The local school safety conversation

Find out what's happening in Twinsburgwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In the month since the , this issue has been at the forefront of conversations across the country, including Northeast Ohio. School districts from Solon to Lakewood to Mentor have taken the issue on, opting to strengthen their ID policy for visitors and looking for ways to identify students that need extra support.

Twinsburg also has been pro-active in making sure students are safe, local officials said.

After Newtown, Twinsburg Superintendent Kathryn Powers said in a letter to parents that school and law enforcement personnel work hard to stay prepared for crises and update all policies and procedures on a regular basis to stay up-to-date with best practices. Twinsburg police train in the school buildings during the summer to familiarize themselves with the structures.

Twinsburg Police Chief Christopher Noga said after Newtown that the police department and the schools are committed to making sure the city's children are safe, and they have increased police presence in the school buildings and are revisiting policies and procedures.

"For the near future, we are increasing our presence at all buildings throughout the school day and both the Schools and the PD are already in the process of reviewing our particular pieces of the safety and response plans," Noga wrote. "While I do not know what, if any, changes to school safety philosophy will emerge as a result of the Sandy Hook Elementary incident, I am committed to ensuring that the Twinsburg Police Department does all that we can to keep our kids safe."


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