Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Student Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Toms River board approves student-safety report showing declines in incidents
Summary
The Board of Education approved the semiannual Student Safety Data System report showing a 21% drop in reportable offenses and a 41% drop in confirmed harassment/intimidation/bullying for Jan.–June 2024 versus Nov. 2023; the board voted to accept the report following a staff presentation.
The Board of Education of the Toms River Regional Schools on Wednesday approved the district's semiannual Student Safety Data System (SSDS) report covering Jan. 1–June 30, 2024.
A district official presenting the report said, "For the period of January 1 to 06/30/2024, there was a 21% decrease in reportable offenses and a 41% decrease in confirmed HIB compared to our November 2023 report," and listed incident counts: 131 acts of violence, 24 instances of damage to property, 9 weapons incidents, 62 substance-abuse incidents and 52 confirmed HIBs for a total of 278 incidents.
The reduction was described as a district priority tied to collaborations with local partners, including the Health and Wellness Coalition, the YMCA, Effective School Solutions and the Toms River Police Department. The presenter said staff are using character-based and social-emotional programming and interventions such as responsive-classroom and positive behavioral support systems to address underlying causes.
Board member Kidney moved to approve the SSDS report; the motion was seconded and carried on a roll-call vote recorded in the meeting minutes. The board also noted it reviews SSDS data monthly and asked staff to continue reporting trend analysis to the board.
Background: New Jersey public school districts submit SSDS reports twice a year and use the data to track incidents that meet state and federal reporting requirements. The board's approval is a routine acknowledgment of the district's submission and local review process.
