Objective

To determine the extent of implementation of the five recommendations included in our initial audit report, Oversight of School Safety Planning Requirements (2018-S-34).

About the Program

In New York, schools are required to develop and regularly review safety plans as part of the Safe Schools Against Violence in Education (SAVE) Act. The SAVE Act aims to improve the learning environment in New York’s schools by preventing school violence and increasing the safety of students and teachers in school settings. Among its key provisions, the SAVE Act requires school districts to establish a code of conduct, mandates training and instruction for preventing and responding to incidents of school violence, and establishes a uniform system for reporting violent incidents. Further, the SAVE Act requires schools and districts to be prepared to respond to incidents when they occur. Specifically, part of the SAVE Act added Section 2801-a of the Education Law requiring public school districts, charter schools, and Boards of Cooperative Educational Services programs (herein collectively referred to as School Districts) to develop comprehensive district-wide safety plans (District Plans) and building level emergency response plans (Building Plans).

Our initial audit report, which covered the period September 1, 2016 through September 27, 2018, examined whether the State Education Department (Department) was monitoring schools, districts, and other programs to ensure they are complying with legislation and regulations governing school safety planning. Overall, we determined the Department was not sufficiently monitoring School Districts’ compliance with the requirements for school safety planning, and consequently did not have assurance that the requirements were being met. We found that the Department primarily focused on ensuring that School Districts submitted their Building Plans to the State Police annually, which resulted in 99 percent compliance. However, due to the Department’s lack of oversight, School Districts did not consistently: annually adopt their safety plans in accordance with Department guidance, hold public hearings on the plans, appoint district-wide safety teams including all required representatives, or train employees on the plans. In addition, the Department never submitted a report on the implementation of and compliance with the provisions of the Law to the Executive and the Legislature, although it has been required to do so annually since 2000.

Key Finding

The Department has made significant progress in addressing the issues noted in our initial report. Of the five recommendations from our initial audit report, the Department has implemented four and partially implemented one.