District Campus Safety Updates and Student Well-being Supports

This summer, Seattle Public Schools (SPS) continued our work on safety improvements in all schools. We launched a mobile phone app that provides easy access for our community to report safety concerns. We updated signage for all our schools to help students, staff, and visitors remember and follow safety procedures.

Our staff participated in training to promote safety practices and de-escalation techniques. We are working with our school principals to increase support for our campus or building safety teams.

We are providing additional mental health resources in our middle and high schools and partnering with the City of Seattle for Reach Out Seattle, a youth mental health wellness initiative.   

Reporting Safety Concerns with Mobile App and the Safe Schools Hotline  

Threats of school violence should be reported right away to school staff, through the Safe Schools Hotline, or the new mobile app.  

If users share a tip for a specific middle or high school, the report will be sent to the school leader, central office leadership, and the SPS safety and security team. Users may also submit a tip for elementary or K-8 schools through the district mobile app. These reports are sent to the SPS safety and security team and central office leadership.  

Please use this universal link to download the app on your mobile phone. You may also search “Seattle Public Schools” in your phone’s app store. For middle and high schools, users may select their school. Elementary and K-8 schools do not have customized apps.   

The Safe Schools Hotline can be used to report any threats to SPS schools. It is managed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The hotline phone number is 206-252-0510.  

Building Signage, Entry and Classroom Locks, Staff Training, School Safety Groups  

Every school is required to create their site emergency management plans. The safety and security team supports the school leader and their Building Safety Teams as they develop or update their plan at the beginning of each school year.  

Our safety and security team conducts safety training for staff. This training promotes good building safety practices and de-escalation techniques to support students in distress.  

SPS facilities teams continue their work to update building entry and classroom locks. Lock replacement across all SPS buildings has reached the halfway point with more than 10,000 locks replaced in the last 12 months.   

New consistent signage at all schools aims to guide our community in simple, visible ways to respond to urgent situations.

Community Support and Resources for Student Mental Health  

SPS, Public Health (Seattle & King County), and the City’s Department of Education and Early Learning (DEEL) are expanding resources — such as clinicians and social workers — at five pilot schools.   

The pilot schools are Aki Kurose Middle School, Rainier Beach High School, Denny International Middle School, Chief Sealth International High School, and Ingraham High School. Read more about the DEEL Student Mental Health program.  

We are partnering with the City of Seattle for the Reach Out Seattle initiative. The new effort, which launched this fall, is focused on prevention, early intervention, and non-clinical interventions, and community education to increase student mental health resources. Read more about Reach Out Seattle.