Anonymous Colorado School Safety Tip Line Received Record Number of Tips Last Month

Anonymous Colorado School Safety Tip Line Received Record Number of Tips Last Month

The Safe2Tell program, which allows students to anonymously report school safety concerns in Colorado, received a record number of tips this May.

  • By Jessica Davis
  • June 17, 2019

Colorado’s Safe2Tell program, which lets students anonymously report school safety concerns, received a record number of tips in May, according to its May report.

Safe2Tell, which began in 2004 and was adopted by the Colorado Attorney General’s Office about five years ago, announced in its May report that the program received 2,877 tips in May alone. Last month’s tips reflect an 84 percent increase in monthly tip volume compared to May 2018.

The increase in tips is the largest Safe2Tell has seen since it was adopted by the Attorney General’s office, according to Program Director Essi Ellis.

“I truly believe it is students wanting to make a difference within their schools and really help their peers,” Ellis said. “Even if we can help one student in need or in crisis, we feel that as a victory for the program.”

The Safe2Tell program provides students, parents, staff and the community to anonymously submit safety concerns related to Colorado schools. Users can submit tips online, via a phone number or through the Safe2Tell app.

Eight trained Safe2Tell analysts screen the tips and distribute the information to local law enforcement and school administrations.

The Safe2Tell program has been used before to address threats of violence and potential suicidal behavior within schools.

During the 2018-2019 school year, Safe2Tell reported that it received 18,916 actionable or serious tips, an increase of 22 percent over the prior school year. The top three categories of tip reported to the program are suicide, drugs and bullying, and suicide threats alone have increased 68 percent since May 2018, according to the report.

Safe2Tell’s May 2019 report comes just a month after a shooting at the STEM School in Highlands Ranch, Colo., which left one dead and eight injured. Ellis said school shootings like these can lead to more tips in the future.

“I think it is students breaking that code of silence and really wanting to speak up and empower themselves and their peers to really protect their school,” Ellis said.

According to Safe2Tell, law enforcement and school districts reported that 97.5 percent of tips were submitted to the program in “good faith” and 2.45 percent of the submitted tips were false this school year.

About the Author

Jessica Davis is the Associate Content Editor for 1105 Media.

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