Posted on 10/07/2004 10:14:24 AM PDT by crushelits
WASHINGTON - The Education Department has advised school leaders nationwide to watch for people spying on their buildings or buses to help detect any possibility of terrorism like the deadly school siege in Russia.
The warning follows an analysis by the FBI (news - web sites) and the Homeland Security Department of the siege that killed nearly 340 people, many of them students, in the city of Beslan last month.
"The horror of this attack may have created significant anxiety in our own country among parents, students, faculty staff and other community members," Deputy Education Secretary Eugene Hickok said in a letter to schools and education groups.
The safety advice is based on lessons learned from the Russia incident. But there is "no specific information indicating that there is a terrorist threat to any schools or universities in the United States," Hickok said.
Federal law enforcement officials also have encouraged local police to stay in contact with school officials and have encouraged reporting of suspicious activities, the letter says.
In particular, schools were told to watch for activities that may be legitimate on their own — but may suggest a heightened terrorist threat if many of them occur.
Among those activities:
_ Interest in obtaining site plans for schools, bus routes and attendance lists;
_ Prolonged "static surveillance" by people disguised as panhandlers, shoe shiners, newspaper or flower vendors or street sweepers not previously seen in the area;
_ Observations of security drills;
_ People staring at or quickly looking away from employees or vehicles as they enter or leave parking areas;
_ Foot surveillance of campuses involving individuals working together.
The effort is the latest by the Education Department and other federal agencies to encourage school officials to maintain and practice a plan for responding to emergencies.
After the terrorist takeover of the Russian school, President Bush (news - web sites) asked his top advisers to review their strategies for dealing with hostage situations, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge has said.
The federal government is advising schools to take many steps to improve the security of their buildings. Those include installing locks for all doors and windows, having a single entry point into buildings and ensuring they can reach school bus drivers in an emergency.
The Education Department sent its letter by e-mail Wednesday to school police, state school officers, school boards, groups representing principals and many other organizations.
The Homeland Security Department also sent a bulletin Wednesday to federal, state and local emergency officials to provide fresh guidance based on the review of the school siege in Russia.
BUMP
I WANT TO HEAR BEES BUZZING!
So I'm putting one of my kids to bed and I fall asleep in bed with him - common occurrence around our house - when my wife comes in, wakes me up and says - I've got to talk to you about something. She'd been on FR and came across an article naming all the school systems on this computer disk found on the guy in Iraq. Turns out, one of them is in the county next to ours. I thought that was very eerie, particularly considering I'd been on this thread earlier today. Thank God for FreeRepublic - we'll be more vigilant now.
You have Freepmail
We should not take action until we have multilateral support. We need to build a coalition first.
Amen!
Yet another reason to homeschool.
The Chechen President was killed on a newly constructed stage. No surprise that when Bush addressed the Republican National Convention they took the old stage out and imported an entirely new one.
I think all polls should be moved to police stations and border patrol offices. Have them were someone is armed. (might cut down on fraud too:') I'm serious.
Some places they do, others they don't. I'll be voting early which wont' be at my "regular" polling place, which is a school, although it is in a school district facility (part of the district athletic facilities).
Some places they do, others they don't. I'll be voting early which wont' be at my "regular" polling place, which is a school, although it is in a school district facility (part of the district athletic facilities).
Yeah, right. Dream on. We didn't vaporize Mecca after over 3000 of our people were killed on 9/11 (including many children). Why should we start now?
God help everyone if they ever attack our children. Geo-politics, political correctness, religious and ethnic tolerance will not stop the retribution. It simply, will be hell on earth, home and abroad.
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/WNT/US/schools_threat_041007-1.html
"SCHOOL WARNING" (October 7, 2004)
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "School officials in Fort Myers, Fla.; Salem, Ore.; Gray, Ga.; Birch Run, Mich.; two towns in New Jersey; and two towns in California have been told to increase security in light of the discovery.
Officials in the New Jersey towns, Franklinville and Rumson, were notified by counterterrorism officials last month that their schools had been possibly singled out."
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/10/72004c.asp
"Bennett Says U.S. Elementary Schools Exposed to Terrorist Attack"
By Bill Fancher and Jody Brown
October 7, 2004
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,134820,00.html
"CD With Info on U.S. Schools Found in Iraq"
Thursday, October 07, 2004
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,134693,00.html
"FBI, DHS Offer Way to Protect U.S. Schools"
Thursday, October 07, 2004
http://www.dhs.gov
Department of Homeland Security
I believe that you are correct on this one.
9/11, or something equivalent, was something which did not surprise me. I went into shock at the time, but was not surprised. Nor would a school attack here, on our soil.
Thank you for posting ( I agree with you). Norski.
I agree. Thank you for posting this.
Yes.
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