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Safe Schools
NEW SY 25-26 Template and Related Documents
Safe School Plan 25-26 Technical Training
SY 25-26 Triennial Review List
SY 25-26 SSP Secure Drive Registration
SY 25-26 NM SSP Template (PDF)
Resources in Response to Crisis involving children
National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) (English and Spanish)
Social Media Threat Guidance and Assessments
Senate Bill 11, Anti-Distraction Policy in Schools, from the 2025 Legislative Session, was signed by Governor Lujan Grisham and took effect June 20, 2025. The legislation requires that each school district and charter school adopt and implement a wireless communication device policy and that the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED) issue guidelines outlining the minimum requirements for a wireless communication device policy. This memorandum serves as the required PED guidance in accordance with the bill. Please submit wireless communication device policies to safe.healthyschools@ped.nm.gov by August 31, 2025.
- In October, the CDC released a series of studies on the national version of the YRRS, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey including several with mental health findings:
- Frequent Social Media Use and Experiences with Bullying Victimization, Persistent Feelings of Sadness or Hopelessness, and Suicide Risk Among High School Students – “Frequent social media use was associated with a higher prevalence of bullying victimization at school and electronically, persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and some suicide risk among students (considering attempting suicide and having made a suicide plan)”
- Social Media Threat Guidance and Assessments (PDF)
- K-12 Anonymized Threat Response Guidance | CISA
- Anonymized Threat Response Guidance: A Reference Guide for K-12 Schools (PDF)
Emergency Communication Modifiable Templates
- Parent Letter on Emergency Procedures – Before an Incident Occurs (Word)
- Parent Letter on Emergency Procedures – Before an Incident Occurs (PDF)
- Emergency Modifiable Message Template (Word)
School Safety Drill Requirements are as follows:
https://www.srca.nm.gov/parts/title06/06.029.0001.html
Emergency drills shall be conducted in each public and private school in the state, as follows:
- During the first four weeks of school, schools shall conduct:
- two fire drills; (primary location)
- one evacuation drill (secondary location); and
- one active shooter/shelter in place drill.
- During the rest of the school year, each school shall conduct at least 4 additional emergency drills, at least two of which shall be fire drills.
In locations where a fire department is maintained, a member of the fire department shall be requested to be in attendance for the purpose of giving educational instruction and recommendations for all 8 drills.
Fire department attendance is at the discretion of available resources.
- Any drill conducted for the purpose of active shooter preparation/response should include parent/guardian notification.
New Mexico Public Schools Insurance Authority (Free School Trainings)
STOPit – Anonymous Reporting System
Contact information:
- Matthew Toth – mtoth@stopitsolutions.com (new districts/charters)
- Annie Martinez – amartinez@stopitsolutions.com (existing STOPit school districts / charters)
Rave Panic Button
Patricio Ruiloba
Customer Success Advocate
Motorola Solutions
patricio.ruiloba@motorolasolutions.com
Active Shooter
Note: The Video below does not replace in-person Required Active Shooter Training for your school
Family Reunification Site Planning
- Working reunification model-shared by: Albuquerque Public School District, credit to: Capital Master Plan Executive Director, Kizito Wijenje, and Graphics Senior Director, Jerome Martinez
- REMS Fact Sheet on Post-Disaster Reunification and K-12 Schools
- Student/Parent Reunification video, Adams 12 Five Star Schools, CO, 2016
Anti-Bullying and Cyberbullying Training and Resources
- In October, the CDC released a series of studies on the national version of the YRRS, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey including several with mental health findings:
- Frequent Social Media Use and Experiences with Bullying Victimization, Persistent Feelings of Sadness or Hopelessness, and Suicide Risk Among High School Students – “Frequent social media use was associated with a higher prevalence of bullying victimization at school and electronically, persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and some suicide risk among students (considering attempting suicide and having made a suicide plan)”
- Disparities in School Connectedness, Unstable Housing, Experiences of Violence, Mental Health, and Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors Among Transgender and Cisgender High School Students – “Approximately 26% of transgender and questioning students attempted suicide in the past year compared with 5% of cisgender male and 11% of cisgender female students. Intervention opportunities for schools to create safer and more supportive environments for transgender and questioning students can help address these disparities.”
- Mental Health and Suicide Risk Among High School Students and Protective Factors – “Youth Risk Behavior Survey, CDC analyzed the prevalence of mental health and suicide risk indicators and their associations with individual-, family-, and school- or community-level protective factors. All protective factors were associated with lower prevalence of one or more risk indicators. Findings from this report can serve as a foundation for the advancement of research on protective factors and for the development and implementation of programs, practices, and policies that protect and promote mental health and emotional well-being among youth.”
- Stop Bullying
- Key Considerations for Bullying Prevention
- Bully Assessment Flow Chart
- School-based Bullying Prevention I-Guide (OJJDP)
- National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Cyber/Internet Safety-Sextortion
- Strengthen Your Cyber Defenses Amid Rising Cybersecurity Threats
- No Cost Cybersecurity Services and Solutions
- Internet Safety Tips
- Online Safety Resources
- Sextortion Resource Sheet
- This is Sextortion
- Online Sextortion: I Didn’t Think it Would Happen to Me
- REMS Fact Sheet on Incorporating Sextortion into School EOPs
- National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
- When Your Child is Missing: A Family Survival Guide
Swatting Calls and Hoaxes – Best Practices
Behavioral/Mental Health
- Please see the most recent quarterly report on mental health and suicide attempt emergency department visits in New Mexico. The report is attached and all quarterly reports and methodology are available at: https://www.nmhealth.org/about/erd/ibeb/mhp/. For another year, the number of adolescent mental health and suicide-related visits to the emergency department quickly increased during the month of August, particularly among adolescent girls. For more information about the close association with mental health emergency room visits and times of year when youth are returning to school, please see this article on seasonality of youth mental health.
- 2023 New Mexico Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey (YRRS) – County Level 2023 YRRS High School County Reports are now available. The 2023 survey included responses from 36,000 high school and middle school students from nearly 400 schools. Results indicate statewide decreases in most mental health concerns among high school students after eight years of year over year increases.
- Additional information about the close association with mental health emergency room visits and times of year when youth are returning to school, please see this article on seasonality of youth mental health.
- Suicide Prevention Resource Center
- Adobe Brochure 2023 – New Mexico UNM
- Project Light – Las Cruces (Front Cover) – (Back Cover)
- The School Mental Health Action Guide
- Sample Survey: School Staff Skills (Word)
- Sample Survey: School Staff Skills (PDF)
- Guide to K-12 Student Wellbeing: Strategies to Recognize, Document, and Support Students in Distress
- Children and Mental Health
- Coalition to Support Grieving Students
- Appropriate and Inappropriate Activities for School Counselors
- Non-Suicidal Self-Injury in Schools: Developing and Implementing School Protocols, Cornell Research Program on Self-Injury and Recovery
- Model School District Policy on Suicide Prevention: Model Language, Commentary, and Resources
- Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention Training Program, NM Suicide Prevention Coalition
- After a Suicide: A Toolkit for Schools
Incident Command/Communications/and After-Action Reporting
- Back-to-School Campaign Communications Toolkit
- Site Incident Response Kit
- NM School Incident Command Tactical & Accountability Sheet (IC TAC) (PDF)
- NM School Incident Command Tactical & Accountability Sheet (IC TAC) (XLSX)
- After-Action Reports: Capturing Lessons Learned and Identifying Areas for Improvement
Public Health
Additional Resources
- Dr. Dewey Cornell-The Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines | UVA School of Education and Human Development (virginia.edu)
- Uvalde Texas-Robb Elementary-Critical Incident Review
- US Secret Service resource for Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model.
- DHS K-12 School Security: A Guide for Preventing and Protecting against Gun Violence provides preventive and protective measures to address the threat of gun violence in schools. The Guide is delivered in two parts: the first portion is a PDF with general security best practices and considerations in narrative format; while the second portion is an Excel-based security survey. Together, these tools outline action-oriented security practices and options for consideration based on the results of the individual school’s responses to the survey.
- School Resource Officers, School Law Enforcement Units and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA): This FAQ document is follow-up to the Federal Commission Report and consolidates guidance and technical assistance into a single resource to help raise schools’ and districts’ awareness of these provisions (02/12/19).
- The Final Report of the Federal Commission on School Safety (Dec. 2018)
- US Department of Homeland Security Guide for Preventing and Protecting Against Gun Violence and School Security Survey for Gun Violence (click on the School Security Survey to access the site assessment Excel workbook)
- The Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance Center provides additional of training opportunities.
For questions about Safe Schools Plans, please contact:
Kathryn Bolkovac
Safe Schools Program Coordinator
Kathryn.Bolkovac@ped.nm.gov