Libya, Iran, Al-Qaeda, Mexican drug cartels, and the list of other possible threat sources to U.S. national security and public safety continue to grow. In fact, one veteran national public official openly asked this week if the U.S. has more international enemies now than we did just prior to 9/11. When you think about it, […]
Category Archive: Terrorism and Schools
Teen Arrested in Terror Car Bomb Plot: School Implications
The FBI thwarted an alleged attempted terrorist car bombing by a 19-year-old Somalia-born U.S. citizen who the feds say attempted to detonate a car bomb at a Portland Christmas tree lighting ceremony Friday night. The male was arrested by the FBI, who had been monitoring him for months in an undercover operation. The 19-year-old reportedly […]
Terror Cargo Bombs, Anthrax Scares, & School Mail Handling Security
An envelope containing white powder and marked with “anthrax” and “Al Qaeda” arrives in your school’s main office mail. Would your office staff know what to do? The recent cargo planes with bombs mailed by terrorists, as a part of an international terror plot, quickly brought school mailing handling procedures to mind. Add to that the anthrax scares experienced in […]
How Homegrown Terrorism is a Threat to School Safety
The U.S. has been slow to respond to homegrown radicals, creating a vulnerability for domestic terrorism right here in the U.S., according to a new report by the co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission. The Associated Press highlighted their findings in Report: US must deal with homegrown terror problem. The full report is available at Assessing the […]
The NY City Terror Plot Connection to School Security
There is a direct connection between the New York City Times Square terror bomb plot and the security of your child’s school. I talked about schools as terror targets in my April 28th post entitled, “Is Your Child’s School a Soft Target for Terrorism?,” Ironically, that post was published just a few days before the New York City […]
Is Your Child’s School a Soft Target for Terrorism?
The 1999 Columbine High School attack has been referred to by many as an act of terrorism. Domestic terrorism, obviously, but still terrorism. Did the act fit the definition of terrorism? If not the formal definition, it certainly fits the concept. In my first book (Practical School Security), written back in 1998, I identified terrorism as one […]
What Does a Fireman Know About Being A School Board Member?
If the fireman is Reno Contipelli, he knows a lot about school boards. And he never stops learning about school safety and taking those lessons back to his school-community. Reno is a professional firefighter and dedicated 17-year school board member for Cuyahoga Heights Schools in Northeast Ohio. He also heads up the board’s school safety committee. Reno […]