Press Release- April 27, 2007
OFFICE OF GOV. BILL RITTER, JR.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2007
Contact:
Evan Dreyer, 720.350.8370
HHS Press Office, (202) 690-6343
GOV. RITTER, COLORADO EXPERTS & SECRETARY LEAVITT DISCUSS ISSUES RAISED BY VIRGINIA TECH TRAGEDY
Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and US Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt met in Denver today as part of a review of the broader questions raised by the Virginia Tech tragedy. They held discussions with two dozen state and local leaders, educators, mental health experts and law enforcement officials to discuss lessons learned from the Columbine High School tragedy and other experiences in Colorado.
President Bush has asked Secretary Leavitt and other cabinet officials to travel across America and hold these discussions. Once this process has been completed, Secretary Leavitt will work with Education Secretary Margaret Spellings and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to summarize the issues raised and report to the President within 30 days.
"We hope the federal team led by Secretary Leavitt found today's discussion productive,¿ Gov. Ritter said after the 2-hour meeting at the Governor's Residence. "We shared the painful lessons that we learned and the expertise that we gained from the Columbine tragedy. Colorado can offer valuable insight into the national discussion so that we can better understand what happened at Virginia Tech and prevent something similar from occurring again."
"The pain of this tragedy is felt throughout this nation and our hearts and prayers go out to the victims' families, friends and the entire Virginia Tech community," HHS Secretary Leavitt said. "While our review will not answer all the questions or solve all the problems, we hope to frame up a series of issues as part of a thoughtful, national dialogue and determine where the federal government can play a role in helping states and communities avoid such tragedies in the future."
On April 26, officials began convening the meetings in communities across the U.S. Over the next few weeks, Secretaries Leavitt and Spellings and Attorney General Gonzales are planning to travel separately to hold discussions in West Virginia, Minnesota, Colorado, Utah, Tennessee, Texas, Florida and California. Similar tragedies have occurred in many of these states and the lessons learned from those events will provide valuable input for this review. Administration officials will also meet with members of Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine's commission, which is conducting an in-depth investigation of this tragedy from the state's perspective.
COLORADO PARTICIPANTS
Mary Baydarian
Position: Director
Department: Park County Department of Human Services
Karen L. Beye
Position: Executive Director
Department: Colorado Department of Human Services
Del Elliott, Ph.D.
Position: Director
Department: Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, University of Colorado
Robin Finegan
Position: Victims¿ Services Consultant
Department: Denver DA's Office
Harriet Hall, Ph.D.
Position: President and CEO
Department: Jefferson Center for Mental Health
Caren Leaf
Position: Associate Director
Department: Division of Youth Corrections, Colorado Department of Human Services
Ted Mink
Position: Sheriff
Department: Jefferson County
John Nicoletti, Ph.D.
Position: Co-Founder
Department: Nicoletti-Flater Associates
Barbara O'Brien
Position: Lt. Governor
Department: State of Colorado
Felicia Patterson
Position: Chief of Student Affairs
Department: Colorado Community College System
Emilia Paul
Position: Interim Associate Vice President of Student Services and Dean of Student Life Department: Metropolitan State College of Denver
Bill Ritter, Jr.
Position: Governor
Department: State of Colorado
Jeannie Ritter
Position: First Lady
Department: State of Colorado
Frank D. Sanchez, Ph.D.
Position: Associate Vice Chancellor
Department: Enrollment and Student Engagement, University of Colorado at Denver
John Suthers
Position: Attorney General
Department: Colorado Department of Law
Kit Thompson
Position: Director
Department: Boulder County IMPACT program
Deborah Trout, Ph.D.
Position: Director
Department: Division of Behavioral Health and Housing, CO Department of Human Services
Jim Walpole, Ph.D.
Position: Superintendent
Department: Platte Canyon School District
Pete Weir
Position: Executive Director
Department: Colorado Department of Public Safety
Major Jim Wolfinbarger
Position: Director
Department: Office of Preparedness, Colorado State Patrol, Department of Public Safety
Janet Wood, M.B.A., M.Ed.
Position: Director
Department: Behavioral Health Services, CO Department of Human Services
Bill Woodward
Position: Director of Training and Technical Assistance
Department: Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, University of Colorado
ABOUT COLORADO¿S SAFE2TELL PROGRAM
- Colorado developed the Safe2Tell Prevention Initiative in 2003 upon the recommendation of the Columbine Commission.
- The Safe2Tell hotline provides a way for students, parents and others to communicate specific concerns to prevent a violent act before it occurs. According to a Secret Service report, in 75 percent of school violence, someone other than the attacker knew an attack was being planned but did not report or act on that information.
- Hotline number is 1-877-542-SAFE. The line is staffed 24/7 by specialists at the State Patrol who disperse calls to appropriate agencies, including the Colorado Information Analysis Center. Website www.safe2tell.org also provides additional information.
- Hotline has received more than 1,500 calls from people in 89 cities and 42 counties.
- Of those calls, 392 triggered an investigation that resulted in a positive outcome where something was prevented. Those numbers include the prevention of 40 suicides, the seizure of 54 weapons, and the prevention of 18 planned school attacks. Twenty-seven of the calls involved illegal drugs and alcohol use, 49 calls involved child-abuse situations, and 40 percent of callers were adults.
- SB 197 (Sen. Morse, Rep. Frangas) would add a statutory component of anonymity for callers and confidentiality of Safe2Tell records to protect callers from retribution.
- Program was initially aimed at elementary and middle schoolers and is now being expanded to high schools. Discussions are also underway about adding college campuses. Sixteen other states have inquired about Colorado's Safe2Tell program.
- Program exists as a nonprofit funded by a 2003 grant for $375K from the Colorado Trust for three-year start-up costs. Colorado Trust provided a second $375,000 grant in 2006.
- Partner agencies: Colorado Attorney General's Office, Dept. of Public Safety, State Patrol, the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence at CU-Boulder, School District Self Insurance Pool, Dept. of Corrections and Colo. District Attorneys Council.
- Safe2Tell also provides training to school staff, parents, and law enforcement focusing on education, prevention, awareness, accountability and follow-up.