We’re used to seeing teenagers with faces glued to their phones to text a friend, but now students in the North Syracuse Central School District have an app to message their principal.
So far, the anonymous form of communication has stopped fights in the hallway and busted students vaping in the bathroom, but the app allows students who see something, to say something, when they see a threat on social media.
Tip411 is a technology suggested by the Onondaga County School Safety Task Force, which was put together last year by the Onondaga County District Attorney after 17 people will killed in the Parkland, Florida high school shooting.
DA Bill Fitzpatrick says he was compelled to put together the group, knowing that police missed many warning signs in Parkland.
Tip411 is already available to all citizens in Onondaga County, as a way to reach their local police. But now, many school districts are getting the app, or something similar, for students to talk with administrators.
NewsChannel 9 surveyed local superintendents and based on their responses and what’s available publicly on district websites, these are what the district’s offer in terms of anonymous tip lines: