SPC Handbook

Activate your Student Protection Council

Once your Student Protection Council is established, it is time to bring the School Safety Net to life; follow these steps:

• Your Director posts the web address for School Safety Net on the discussion board. All reports must be made through this website in order for them to be processed properly.
• The director should post a copy of your school’s Bully Discipline Policy on the board for discussion. Effective bully discipline policies must a have red line for the number of repeat bullying incidents before expulsion from the school occurs. From our research, schools that have bullying under control expel bullies after the 4th incident.
• Here is a sample Bully Discipline Policy that is used by many schools who have bullying and threats under control. Your school’s policy should follow a similar blueprint:

Sample Discipline Policy for Bullying

• 1st offense / Level 1 Bullying - The bully is only given a warning and shown the entire bullying discipline policy; this provides the student with the opportunity to correct their behavior and avoid the more severe consequences for bullying. The bully’s parents/guardians will immediately be notified of the bullying behavior committed by their student. School administrators can require counseling for both the student and their parents if necessary.
• 2nd offense / Level 1 Bullying - The bully gets 3 days of in school suspension and is again shown the entire policy so they will be fully aware of the pathway they have placed themselves on. The bully’s parents/guardians will immediately be notified that their student has committed a second bullying offense. School administrators can require counseling for both the student and their parents if necessary. If the student is involved in athletics, cheerleading or any other type of extra- curricular activities, their coaches/sponsors will be immediately notified that the student has 2 offenses of bullying and one more offense will remove them from all sports/extra-curricular activities. These coaches/sponsors will be expected to immediately become involved and provide all assistance in shutting down the student’s bullying behavior. These coaches/sponsors can levy their own consequences on the student for jeopardizing their responsibility to their team/group because of bullying.
• 3rd offense / Level 1 Bullying - The bully is no longer allowed to participate in any sport, cheerleading, or any type of extra-curricular activity for the remainder of the school year, nor can they attend any extra-curricular activity for the remainder of the school year. Their participation in school will be limited to attending classes and then leaving the campus. They will receive 3 days of out of school suspension and will not be allowed to return to school until he/she and their parents/guardians take a tour of the alternative school that students attend when they are expelled from school. This clearly exhibits for bullies and their parents what the next step in this process delivers and allows the bully a final opportunity to correct their behavior. School administrators can require counseling for both the student and their parents if necessary.
• 4th offense / Level 1 Bullying – Recommendation to the school board for expulsion for the remainder of the school year.

A Bully Discipline Policy of this design accomplishes the following:

• The 1st offense warning allows any student who may not be a bully, but acted improperly to a classmate, to correct their behavior at this point and avoid any further consequences from bullying.
• The 2nd offense brings into the equation every coach/staff member that has direct contact with the bullying student and allows them to interject their influence/consequences on the bully. This is extremely valuable.
• The 3rd offense takes away all things from the bully (sports, groups, etc.) that are more satisfying to the bully than abusing their class mates. It also clearly communicates to the bully that this is the final wakeup call; one more offense and school is literally out.
• If a bully commits a 4th offense after all the efforts made to correct their behavior, they are proving that they are unwilling to carry themselves at the level of conduct that is required to attend “regular school.” Alternative schools are specifically for these types of students. The people behind School Safety Net believe this: Our first obligation is to well behaved students who respect their teachers, are good classmates and great friends to the school, and most importantly, are attending school to learn. These and handicapped students are the students we are obligated to first.
• Once the school’s current Bully Discipline Policy is posted, members of the council review it and if it fails to properly provide a platform for shutting down bullying, the Director sends an email to school administrators and school board members requesting that the policy be changed to properly protect students. A copy of the sample policy above should be sent to these administrators as a reference.
• If the current policy fails to properly protect students from bullies and the administration refuses to correct it, continue forward with the system; it will address this as bully reports are submitted.
• The Director should also post the policy regarding the handling of threats against the school. This policy must demand immediate action any time a threat report is filed against the school.
• If the current threat policy fails to properly protect students and the administration refuses to correct it, continue forward with the system; it will address this when the first threat report is submitted.
• Once these policies have been discussed and addressed, all attention turns to the students.
• Parents, teachers, coaches, church leaders, scout leaders, etc. should make sure that every student completely understands the School Safety Net system. Explain to students that it is vitally important that they exclusively use School Safety Net when reporting threats or bullying. This is very important so the number of offenses by any student can be documented and tallied.
• Encourage every student to choose their trusted adult and make sure the adult has reviewed School Safety Net and understand how to submit a report. If a child has no support from home, volunteer to be their trusted adult; this is very important.

Actions by your Student Protection Council

Once the School Safety Net is made operational, the Student Protection Council becomes command central for the School Safety Net system. The council functions as an oversight group that ensures that every bully report and threat is properly handled and quickly shut down.

• Any time any student reaches 3 bullying offenses, the director posts the following notification on the Student Protection Council board:

  Dear Council Members,

  A student at __________________ ( name of school ) has now been reported for 3 confirmed incidents of bullying. I have sent an email to the principal from this council demanding that the abuse from this student be immediately shut down.

  The Director can also add important information to the post that helps committee members better understand the severity of the abuse. Details like if a handicapped student was the victim, if physical violence was used, if this is a habitual bullying situation, etc.

• The director then emails the following letter to the principal from the Student Protection Council:

  Dear ___________ ( principal )

  The Student Protection Council has been notified that _________________ ( bully’s name ) has received their 3rd offense of bullying at the school. If any of these 3 reports were not confirmed please notify us so we can correct our records.

  Every member of this council has pledged to our students that all bullying in the school will be properly addressed and quickly shut down. This council is deeply concerned that this student is habitually bullying other students in the school; the abuse from this student must immediately cease. If the Bully Discipline Policy currently in place fails to properly shut down habitual bullies like this student it is imperative that you contact the school board and make any necessary changes to the policy. If needed, our council can provide a blueprint for an effective Bully Discipline policy that will firmly but fairly shut down this abuse. Please be informed that if another bullying report is filed against this student this council will be forced to take much stronger measures to shut down the abuse from this student.

  Thank you,

  ______________ ( name of director )

  _______________ ( name of school ) Student Protection Council

• If a bully is not shut down, and a 4th bullying offense is reported, the director posts the following notification on the board to informing the council.

  Dear Council Members,

  A student at __________________ ( name of school ) has now been reported for 4 confirmed incidents of bullying. I sent an email to the principal from this council demanding that the abuse from this student be immediately shut down when the student committed their 3rd offense. We now have 2 options that we can choose from:

  • I can send the form letter to all school board members demanding that the abuse from this student be stopped.
  • I can issue a press release to all local media and you can post this press release on your social media to encourage community members to contact the school board members and demand that this abuse be immediately shut down in the school.

Please post which action you believe we should take on this matter.

• Once this notification is posted, the council decides what actions to take. If the council decides to notify school board members the Director emails the following letter to all school board members:

  Dear School Board Member,

  The Student Protection Council for ____________ ( name of school ) has received notification that _________________ ( name of student ) in _________________ ( name of school ) has now been reported for 4 confirmed incidents of bullying. On the 3rd offense the principal was contacted by The Student Protection Council and informed that stronger actions would be taken if this student’s bully behavior continued. We also provided the principal with a sample, firm but fair, Bully Discipline Policy that effectively ends this abuse in schools. With this policy in place this student would now face expulsion from school with this 4th offense.

  The safety of our children is your first duty, nothing comes before it. If another bullying report is confirmed against this student, this council will use every form of media and social media to engage the entire community in coming together and making whatever corrections are needed to make our children safe at school.

  If you haven’t joined the Student Protection Council, please do. This will give you an open platform to talk directly with your fellow citizens and inform them of corrective measures that are being taken to make their children safe again.

  Thank you,

  ______________ ( name of director )

  _______________ ( name of school ) Student Protection Council

• If the council decides that the community must be brought in, the director issues a press release on behalf of the council. This will be issued to all local media as well as posted on social media. All members of the council will share this post on their social media. The entire community will be quickly informed of this safety issue at the school and immediately engaged in correcting it.

Here is sample text for this type of press release:

Student Protection Council Ask for Citizen’s Support

The ______________ ( name of school ) Student Protection Council is asking all citizens to please come forward and support a demand to shut down a threat to our school. Jane Doe, Director of the ABC School Student Protection Council said, “We are deeply concerned with habitual bullying at the school. We now have students with as many as 4 offenses and they are still in school. The Bully Discipline Policy must be corrected; habitual bullies cannot walk the halls of our school.”

Mrs. Doe said that a community-wide effort is underway to make it very clear to the school board that habitual bullying will not be tolerated by the community.

“We are asking our fellow members of the community to please go to our facebook page where there will be a list of all email addresses for school board members. Please send board members a 2 word email; KID SAFETY. Use the words KID SAFETY for both the heading and the message; the board members will know what this email concerns”, Added Doe.

The web address for the council’s facebook page is ___________.

• Once this press release is issued, the Director, or those appointed by the Director and council, can appear on interviews with newspapers, television, radio or other outlets. It is very rare that a council is forced to go to this extreme to make the corrections necessary for our children to be safe, however, if this occurs the community support will be overwhelming; corrections will be made.

• If a threat against the school is reported, the Director immediately notifies the council and the urgency of the threat is assessed. In situations where the council determines that immediate action is needed ( school shooter threat, bomb threat, etc. ) the following protocol is followed:

  • The Director will enlist 4 council members to assist. In many cases the Director will already have a list of volunteer council members in place.
  • One council volunteer calls the FBI office that serves the school. The volunteer records the agent’s name that they speak with. The volunteer verbally tells the agent about the threat and then they get the agent’s email address and phone number. The volunteer then sends the agent a copy of the threat report along with the principal’s contact information.
  • The same procedure is followed by the volunteers who call the state and local law enforcement agency.
  • The 4th volunteer contacts the principal and makes sure the principal has checked their inbox and is aware of the threat. The volunteer informs the principal that the council has contacted local, state and federal authorities. The Director sends the principal an email with the contact information for the law enforcement officers the council has contacted. The Director includes a request that the council be contacted and updated as soon as the person making the threat has been located and contacted by law enforcement.

  • Once the council is notified that the person behind the threat has been contacted, the council then requests an update on the status of the investigation; was the person arrested, detained, etc. From this point the council closely follows the investigation to make sure the threat is quickly resolved. If, for any reason, the council feels that the person making the threat is not being immediately and properly investigated, the council issues a press release asking citizens to contact school officials and law enforcement officials and demand that this threat be immediately eliminated. Here is a sample press release:,

    Student Protection Council Ask for Citizens’ Support

    The ______________ ( name of school ) Student Protection Council is asking all citizens to please come forward and support a demand to shut down a threat to our school. Jane Doe, Director of the ___________ ( name of school ) Student Protection Council said, “We are deeply concerned over a threat that has been made against our school. Even though school administrators as well as federal, state and local authorities were immediately made aware of this threat, this threat is still active and the person behind this threat has not been shut down.” Mrs. Doe said that a community-wide effort is underway to make it very clear to the school board and law enforcement officials that threats against our schools will not be tolerated by this community.

    “We are asking our fellow members of the community to please go to our facebook page where there will be a list of all email addresses for school board members and law enforcement officials. Please send board members and officials a 2 word email; KID SAFETY. Use the words KID SAFETY for both the heading and the message; the board members and officials will know what this email concerns”, says Doe.

    “Our community refuses to allow our children to be attacked by a known threat; the person behind this threat must be immediately shut down”, added Doe. The web address for the council’s facebook page is ___________.

  • Once this press release is issued, the Director, or those appointed by the Director and council, can appear on interviews with newspapers, television, radio or other outlets. It is very rare that a council is forced to go to this extreme to make the corrections necessary for our children to be safe, however, if this occurs the community support will be overwhelming; corrections will be made.
  • Once a threat is reported, if the Student Protection Council is informed that laws are in place that prevent the person behind the threat from being immediately neutralized until the threat can be completely eliminated, immediately issue a press release and have the entire community demand that this law be changed. Any law that protects a person who has made a threat against a school is a law that must immediately be changed. There is ABSOLUTELY no legitimate excuse for making a threat against any school, and anyone who does so must face immediate and severe scrutiny and investigation. NO EXCEPTIONS.

  • The final and most powerful part of School Safety Net are the reports themselves. If a parent or a group of parents find themselves in a situation where they must take legal action, for the first time, they have every report on every bully/threat. If there is a student harmed due to any type of negligence on anyone’s part, these reports are lethal in a courtroom.

    The people behind the School Safety Net designed this system to continually evolve. If your council has any suggestions to further advance this system, please share it on our contact us link.

    Always remember, NEVER post the names of any student, teacher or staff member at the school on the open board. Also, NEVER take any action on reports that are questionable. To do this would gravely undermine the integrity and power to take action of this council.

System Summary

It is extremely important that every Student Protection Council operates with the very highest standards. Council members need to understand that there is nothing to be gained by betraying this system in any way or form. Members should always follow the rules, guidelines and procedures.

Always keep in mind that the council is aware of every report, that every offense is documented and counted. This system does not allow any bully to continue with their abuse; repeat or violent offenders will be shut down, and there is no way around it. This council is also aware of any threat against the school from the very second the report comes in. This council puts every threat under the microscope until it is neutralized and eliminated. Always work within the system and it will deliver for your child and all other students.

Director’s Handbook

As with any group or organization, the Director plays a very significant role. Below are guidelines and information that will assist the Director as they lead the council:

• Always protect the identities of the students and staff involved. Never share these identities with anyone except members who are assisting you.
• Always be firm but fair; follow the system and it will shut down every bully and threat, one way or another.
• Make every effort to have a great relationship with the administrators at the school. Always remember, your council operates through simply counting bullying offenses against a student. Your council has the power to act without any permission from anyone, so conflict with the school is completely unnecessary.
• The Director will receive a copy of every bully and threat report that is submitted for the school through the council’s email account. The Director will file these reports and create a spread sheet that allows them to monitor and track the number of reports against any individual student.
• If the Director chooses, they can involve trusted volunteers from the group to assist in documenting and filing these reports. The Director will forward reports to these volunteers but the Director never provides anyone with the password to the email account. Only the Director directly accesses the email account.

• On every bullying report look for 4 major red flags:

  1- The victim is a handicapped student.

  2- The victim has been bullied by this student before.

  3- A crime was involved in the attack, for example, an assault, robbery, theft, weapon, etc.

  4- The attack was so ruthless and harmful that this is not level 1 bullying and it may require a higher level of consequences than the standard bullying policy provides.

• If any of these red flags are included in the report, be very clear to school administration that the bully must be immediately shut down regardless of the number of offenses they have committed.
• Take every threat very seriously; always give the benefit of the doubt to the safety of the students.
• When a threat is reported that requires immediate action to shut down the person behind the threat, only accept immediate and effective actions from school administrators and law enforcement officials. If this person is not quickly shut down, do not hesitate to issue a press release bringing the entire community into the situation.
• Student Protection Councils never leave themselves in a situation where they wished that they had taken action; School Protection Councils act immediately when necessary.
• It is very important for the Director and council to completely understand the “big picture” here; the short term priority is to quickly shut down bullying and eliminate threats against the school. The long term priority is to significantly raise the bar for conduct and safety in the school, and by doing so, increase the ability to educate students in a happy and productive environment.
• In the event a new principal comes to the school, immediately change the principal’s email address on the facebook page. All reports are automatically sent to the principal’s email address so it is imperative that the email address is correct at all times.

• When reviewing bullying reports against a student, the Director and council should also always be on the lookout for false reporting, revenge reporting or “witch hunt” reporting. This, with a little experience, is very easy to recognize. First, review the video that has been uploaded with the report. If this video is obviously a prank, delete the entire report.

  If there are any suspicions of any kind regarding a report, the Director/board should review the bullying history of the witnesses. If the witnesses have been reported repeatedly for bullying, this is a huge red flag. Also, the Director should compare any other reports against this student and analyze the witnesses. If it is the same witnesses reporting this student, this can be another red flag.

  After reviewing the information above, if the Director has any suspicions that the report may be false or a revenge attack of any kind the Director should send the reporting adult an email expressing the concerns. Their email address is included in the report. The Director, or a member the Director appoints, can also have a phone call with the reporting adult; their phone number is also on the report.

• Do not take any type of actions until it is clear that the report is legitimate. Remember, this council gets involved when a bully is reported for their 3rd offense. Habitual bullies commit 3 offenses very quickly, so, it is not imperative to count every report if there are any suspicions. A habitual bully will continue to offend and provide future reports. The council can deal with them at that point, where there are no suspicions.
• As the Director, your first responsibility is to see that this council operates under one set of rules and standards for every student. There is no privilege provided to any student by this council, regardless of who they are. In many schools where bullying is out of control, the breakdown all began with providing privilege to certain students who were athletes, wealthy, or connected in other ways. Allowing any student privilege through this council only endangers your student body; never allow that to happen.
• The key is to start your council off on the right foot and establish for school administrators, parents and the community that this council cannot be manipulated or sabotaged in any way. By doing this in the beginning, most problems in the future are eliminated.