Keeping Kids Safe at School (Webinar)

In this webinar, led by two interstate legislative groups of CSG’s Midwestern Legislative Conference, participants explored a mix of school-based strategies and state policies to keep schools and students safe — a paramount concern for today’s policy leaders.

Among the initiatives discussed was an intervention strategy referred to as “Alyssa’s Law,” under which schools install silent panic alarms linked directly to law enforcement systems in order to help expedite response times to emergency situations. Lori Alhadeff, the mother of the law’s namesake and founder of the nonprofit Make Our Schools Safe, presented on recent legislative efforts in Ohio and across the country.

Designed for state legislators and other leaders, and open to all, the webinar also featured a presentation by Jennifer DePaoli, a senior researcher at the Learning Policy Institute, on ways states can strengthen their Behavioral Threat Assessments system policies for schools. In addition, attendees learned about recent new laws in Midwestern states to strengthen school safety.

This webinar was co-hosted by the Midwestern Legislative Conference Corrections & Public Safety Forum and Education & Workforce Committee.

Presentations and Resources

• Alyssa’s Law | Make Our Schools Safe
• Safe Schools, Thriving Students | Learning Policy Institute
  • “Safe Schools, Thriving Students: What We Know About Creating Safe and Supportive Schools”
  • “Keeping Schools Safe? The Research on Behavioral Threat Assessments”
  • “Student Mental Health and Education”
• Examples of legislative activity in Midwest in 2025 on school safety