INDIANAPOLIS — School safety is on the minds of parents all over the Hoosier state.
Leaders at Global Preparatory Academy says it has changed its approach to school safety.
“We are looking at all the data we collect on a weekly basis, and we say 'Hey, we are starting to see more problems over here by this restroom,' then we can shift more staff to that place,” Mark Booth, Director of School Safety, said.
Booth says he got school leaders together over the summer to revamp its school safety model to include a Culture Team.
The team consist of about 19 people. It includes social workers, the school's Dean and staff.
“It’s greatly important for someone who has lived through a school shooting and what that does to people,” Booth said.
School leaders say the Culture Team was created in an effort to ensure they understand the root cause of student behavior.
“So if a student has a meltdown or has to step out of class for a minute, we have support right there,” Global Preparatory Academy’s Principal Sharifa Blackwell said.
Blackwell, as well as Booth, gave WRTV a tour of Global Preparatory Academy on Friday.
“We are a school that believes kids should come in happy, healthy and seen. They are valued, and we make sure they are safe throughout the building,” Blackwell said.
The two say they have already seen a decrease in students being removed from classrooms, which means that they are in their classrooms learning more.
“Sometimes we would have 50 to 60 kids out of the classroom a day, and now that’s about ten,” Booth said.
Seventh grader Camilla Leon says she has seen first-hand how the Culture Team has changed the environment at school.
“The school will go through safety procedures and ask us if they feel safe,” Leon said.
