Lake City safety summit

COEUR d’ALENE — Idaho’s top education official went to school Wednesday in Coeur d’Alene.

Sherri Ybarra and four Lake City High School students focused on the subject of school safety.

Ybarra, elected superintendent of public instruction in 2014, is traveling throughout Idaho to speak with students about her newly proposed school safety initiative, called Keep Idaho Students Safe (KISS).

KISS involves a three-pronged approach: a 45-hour safety course required for teachers seeking certification or recertification; a security grant to fund additional school security personnel; and implementation of a statewide crisis communications counselor.

Sophomore Zoe O’Brien said Lake City students felt the need to become educated on this issue after threats were made on the school last fall.

“A big part of why we’re doing this is because we had that threat,” O’Brien said. “We experienced that fear, and now we’re moving in a positive direction.”

The quartet of LCHS students — who were able to review the KISS proposal prior to meeting with Ybarra — were especially focused on elements of the safety course for teachers.

Senior Josh Weadick suggested teachers receive a brief education on counseling techniques so they would feel more comfortable talking with students about mental and emotional health.

“I’d like to change school culture to a safe space where students can talk about their issues,” Weadick said. “Even the teachers that I do trust don’t always fully understand the scope of mental health issues.”

O’Brien added that she believes some students would prefer to speak openly with trusted teachers and faculty rather than be referred to professional help.

“Sometimes I think students just want a discussion instead of being sent to an authority figure,” she said.

Weadick raised the idea of lightening the load on school counselors, who dedicate most of their time to scheduling and administrative issues.

He proposed that schools employ advisers to meet students’ educational needs and counselors for emotional needs.

“The money is out there,” Weadick said. “It’s just a question of how we can reallocate the funds.”

Ybarra said such a move would cost about $20 million, which she said would be “a big ask” of taxpayers and legislators.

The Coeur d’Alene School District employs eight school psychologists and one social worker, according to Director of Communications Scott Maben.

Weadick also proposed the addition of an LGBTQ educational unit to the teachers’ required safety course.

He cited statistics from The Trevor Project that showed LGBTQ youth contemplate suicide at nearly three times the rate of their heterosexual peers.

Ybarra admitted that the current course plan does not include any such measures, but said she would take Weadick’s suggestion under consideration.

She added that she is not in favor of arming teachers but would allow local communities to pursue that route if they so choose.

“Personally, that makes me uncomfortable, and I think most educators agree,” Ybarra said. “Our belief is that communities will make the best decision for themselves.”

While she hopes to improve security measures, Ybarra said she doesn’t want students to feel overwhelmed by the changes.

“Most people don’t want their schools to look like fortresses,” she said.

Finally, Ybarra and the four students — sophomores Seerit Kaur and Caleigh Sherman also participated in the discussion — agreed that schools must look at the whole individual, not just numbers like GPA and standardized test scores.

“We need to focus more on students instead of the numbers behind them,” Ybarra said. “We’re in the business of human elevation. This is about putting humanity back into education.”

Visit www.sde.idaho.gov/kiss for more information about the initiative.