Safe schools lay the foundation for academic and personal success, creating a space where students and educators feel supported, stable and secure—physically and emotionally. 

To discuss how schools and law enforcement leaders can work together to build these positive learning environments, Jillian Kelton, Cartwheel’s Director of Learning and Engagement, moderated a session with three experts in the field. She was joined by Jadine Chou, former Chief of Safety and Security, Chicago Public Schools (CPS), Chief Ronald Applin, Chief of Police for Atlanta Public Schools (APS) and Mike Kurtenbach, Director of School Safety, Arizona Department of Education (ADE).

Creating Safe, Supportive Schools

A large part of school safety is an environment where everyone feels valued and able to thrive. But as our panelists attest, this presents both challenges and opportunities for which there’s no “one size fits all” approach.

When Jadine Chou was appointed Chief of Safety and Security at CPS 14 years ago, the general mindset was “one strike and you're out—if you aren't following the rules, then you don't belong in the school district.” 

It took years to change attitudes away from the zero-tolerance approach which fueled the “school-to-prison pipeline” towards one that valued teachable consequences based on individual situations. “Not everyone's ready for that message,” she shared. “But these are children. We have to make sure that we're using appropriate actions so that we're getting to where we want to be, which is a safe environment for everybody.” 

Meanwhile in Atlanta, Chief Applin has spent the last 10 years building trust between law enforcement and school communities. “The most precious asset that a person has is a child—you're concerned about what the police are going to do to that child, and having police in a school for some people can be very polarizing,” he shared. Emphasizing restorative practices and positive behavior interventions while “working hand-in-hand with the public to show what our purpose is, and how we operate, is very important.” 

A Mental Health-Centered Approach

Improving access to mental health, and recognizing that it is only one piece of a much larger puzzle, is essential in creating safer school communities. 

Learning how to recognize how mental health issues show up for children was a turning point for Chief Applin and his department. “If I'm interacting with a kid, and I recognize certain things in that child, I know that okay, there's something else going on here. It is not because this kid is just ‘bad’,” he shared. 

“I worked at the police academy, and I trained officers to be warriors. But when you’re working with kids, you have to make the switch to being a guardian.” Today, Chief Applin’s officers receive specialist training for dealing with student populations, which includes restorative practices, crisis intervention, mental health first aid, and positive behavioral interventions. 

Mike Kurtenbach, the first and only Director of School Safety for the Arizona Department of Education, agrees that school environments require a particular skillset. A thought leader in incorporating mental health programs into a comprehensive approach, Mike eschewed a “more cops on campus” tactic, instead establishing a task force of counselors, psychologists, elected officials and law enforcement to address areas of need. 

“We all agree that we need to have those mental health supports so that our young people have the opportunity to learn and to thrive,” he shared. In Arizona, school resource officers learn mental health first aid; this year, the state partnered with Cartwheel to help deliver essential telehealth resources, particularly to the 40% of Arizonans who live in rural areas.

“Enforcement is our last resort. First, we work with counselors and social workers, which is why having Cartwheel embedded in our rural schools is so critically important. We can have this multi-layered approach to help young people and their families with the challenges that they face.”

Law Enforcement in School Environments

Before her retirement in January 2025, Jadine built a culture of “local micro control” for school safety across the district’s 644 schools, eliciting buy-in from school councils, parents, educators and principals to define roles and responsibilities in partnership with civilian security and police.

“We subscribe to the notion that safety is everyone's responsibility,” Jadine shared. “One of the things that we worked really hard to do at Chicago Public Schools was create a culture of safety where everyone understands that they play a role.” 

“We recognize that our kids bring a lot with them when they come to school. And if we can recognize that and do something different to create a positive environment for them, that's what we want to do,” Chief Applin added. His department is one of few that participate in the internationally-recognized One Mind Campaign, which involves training 100% of officers in mental health first aid and creating defined and sustainable partnerships with the community health organizations.

In Arizona school resource officers (SROs) serve as mentors and teach law-related classes, in addition to their role as law enforcement. “We seek to humanize the profession, and make our officers understand who they took this oath to serve,” Mike shared. 

That means working collaboratively with school support staff and students as part of a broader effort to enhance safety. And if an arrest does unfortunately need to be made, an off-campus officer will be brought in “so we don't harm those relationships.”

Making Space for Meaningful Connection 

Chief Applin acknowledges tensions between communities and law enforcement means his job isn’t always an easy one. “I can remember during the pandemic doing a lot of the demonstrations, there was a time when I wouldn't stop at a grocery store, I wouldn't stop at a restaurant,” he shared, such was the general feeling of mistrust. The key to shifting the dynamic, he said, is transparency.

“Interacting with our students, engaging with parents and showing them the work that we’re doing … that the number of kids being charged with crime has reduced drastically, they see that we are creating programs where we're looking at ways to deter or defer kids when it comes to criminal issues. We're just being as visible as we can and engaging as we can, so that they see and hear the work that we're doing.”

As far as practical tips go, our panellists recommend setting up an anonymous reporting system so parents and students can alert schools to potential issues—from bullying to weapons on campus—followed by a considered, proactive response. But authentic, meaningful conversations are key. 

“Students will only report if they trust that you're going to do something about it,” Jadine shared.  “We really have to involve all our stakeholders—parents, staff, and principals, but most importantly, our students. If we build it together, we will own it together.”