Episode 2: Quick Byte - The Swiss Cheese Approach to School Safety

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[00:00:00] Introduction to Safe and Innovative Schools

[00:00:00] Dr. Joe: Welcome to Safe and Innovative Schools. I'm Dr. Joe, and today we're going to be talking about the Swiss Cheese approach to school safety. That might sound like a bad thing, but we're going to discuss how it's actually the best approach

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[00:00:09] Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:00:18] Dr. Joe's Background in Safety and Security

[00:00:18] Dr. Joe: A little bit about me. While most people know me or follow me as the innovation guy, the ed tech guy, or the AI guy, all of which is true, I also have a strong background in physical safety and security. I have a bachelor's degree in criminal justice, a master's degree in business and organizational security management.

[00:00:36] Dr. Joe: I've held a Class A commission from the Kansas City Police Department. I've affected dozens of arrests and my military background, had a very strong focus in force protection, counterintelligence, counterterrorism, and emergency response. So my hope today is that I can begin to blend the various aspects of my leadership background with my safety and security and technology background, bring it all [00:01:00] together as we dive in to the Swiss Cheese approach of school safety.

[00:01:04] Understanding Safety and Security

[00:01:04] Dr. Joe: Now before we dive into the Swiss Cheese approach itself, I think it's important that we discuss safety and security. How are they different? What do these words mean and how do they work together? If we think about safety and we think about security, safety is a state of being and so it really means that you're currently experiencing an absence of threat.

[00:01:25] Dr. Joe: The example that I'd like to use is rain. And so if we walk outside right now, it's very possible that we could be safe from rain. We could have an umbrella, we could have a raincoat, we could be wearing galoshes, and if it's raining, we can be safe and dry. But we could also be safe if it's not raining.

[00:01:45] Dr. Joe: And so that state of being safe from the rain could be because of security layers like the umbrella, the raincoat, and the galoshes, or it could just be an absence of threat currently happening. And sometimes these can get [00:02:00] conflated where we think that we're safe because we're not currently experiencing a threat.

[00:02:04] Dr. Joe: However, if a threat did come, if it rained in Arizona, as an example, and you didn't have your umbrella ready for that event, you don't actually have the security layers in place to make sure that you're actually safe from that threat. So we're going to discuss that a little bit more and how the Swiss Cheese approach can make sure that we have the layers of security in place to ensure that safety is maintained even when we experience those threats.

[00:02:32] Dr. Joe: Okay, Dr. Joe, so you've been talking a lot about this Swiss Cheese approach. What exactly is the Swiss Cheese approach? All right, here it is. If you think about slices of Swiss Cheese and you hold one up, you will see that there are holes in this slice of Swiss Cheese, which could represent a single layer of safety or security measures that have been put in place.

[00:02:56] Dr. Joe: So as an example, you could have Weapons [00:03:00] detection systems, metal detectors in place at a high school, and that's one layer. But if you look specifically at that one layer, you're going to see holes in that layer. So students could get around the weapons detection systems, they could sneak things in or hide them after school.

[00:03:15] Dr. Joe: A lot of these are used in the morning, but not so much throughout the rest of the day. There's staffing issues that happen a lot with these weapon detection systems. Some students will put weapons inside of three ring binders, for example, because those binders can't make it through a lot of the detection systems.

[00:03:29] Dr. Joe: So there's ways to defeat the weapons detection system layer on its own. But. If you take another slice of that Swiss Cheese, the holes are going to be in different places. And if you put those slices together, you will see that where one slice has holes in it, another slice doesn't, and you start to see that it's harder and harder to make it through all the holes in all the layers as you put more and more layers of the Swiss Cheese together.

[00:03:58] Dr. Joe: And so if you put all the [00:04:00] layers in place, what ends up happening is an ecosystem of safety and security measures that overall as an ecosystem can make school a much safer place to be.

[00:04:11] Dr. Joe: And this layered approach is really important to understand because as we have to shift finances inside of schools and districts to safety and security, we're having to shift it away from teaching and learning. And a lot of times robust debate will happen about individual layers of security.

[00:04:30] Dr. Joe: Whether it's clear backpacks, weapons detection systems, access control, or cameras , what ends up happening is debate about individual layers, but if you look at any individual layer of that Swiss Cheese, you're going to see holes in that individual layer of Swiss Cheese.

[00:04:45] Dr. Joe: And so a lot of times, Safety and security experts inside of schools and districts or consultants that have been brought in are trying to bring about the understanding of the Swiss Cheese layered approach and how this particular measure is just one layer in [00:05:00] this multi layer approach.

[00:05:01] Dr. Joe: However, the focus gets put in on the holes within that specific layer of cheese. And the truth is, without all of these layers, working together in an interoperable way, you're not going to have the most safe and secure environment for your students for teaching and learning to actually happen.

[00:05:19] Conclusion and Final Thoughts[00:05:19]

[00:05:19] Dr. Joe: That brings us to the end of today's episode on the Swiss Cheese model for school safety. I want to leave you with this thought.

[00:05:26] Dr. Joe: Every layer of protection you add, no matter how small, can make a difference. Whether it's fostering stronger relationships with law enforcement, investing in mental health resources, or improving your physical security measures, the steps you take today will strengthen your school's safety tomorrow.

[00:05:44] Dr. Joe: Until next time, I'm Dr. Joe Phillips. This has been Safe and Innovative Schools. Stay safe. Stay proactive and keep making a difference in your schools and communities.

[00:05:53] Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. [00:06:00] Yeah.