How using the SafeTN app can help keep schools protected

JACKSON, Tenn. — As the school year kicks off, the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security is reminding residents about their SafeTN app.

The SafeTN app is a quick and easy-to-use, anonymous reporting system primarily marketed at students with the hopes of eliminating school attacks.

However, TDOSHS urges not just students, but the entire community to report any suspicious behavior or any information they feel law enforcement should be made aware of.

“We encourage in the office of homeland security reporting of any school threat. You can tell a coach. You can tell a teacher–tell someone, but we understand also, that not everyone wants to talk to someone,” said Gregory Mays, deputy commissioner with TDOSHS. “Some kids feel a lot more comfortable communicating through an app.”

In the Averted School Attack Study, the National Threat Assessment Center looked at 67 school attacks that were averted or stopped before they occurred.

“The 67 averted attacks that they looked at, in 94% of those cases, the prospective shooter told somebody that they were going to do it. That person reported it, and an intervention happened, and the attack was stopped,” said Mays.

According to Mays, the study shows that reporting can save lives. Any tips submitted will be acted upon immediately by the 24/7, seven days a week, threat assessment center.

SafeTN is a free service available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

“Also, the SafeTN has resources available for students or members of the public who may be in a crisis and who are thinking about self-harm,” said Mays.

Mays reminds residents that submitting fake reports of threats is against the law in Tennessee. The TDOSHS would like to keep legitimate reporting channels open.

You can also submit threats to the Threat Assessment Center by phone, email or by filling out the online form. The Threat Assessment Center’s phone number is (615) 532-7825 and their email address is OHSThreatDesk@tn.gov.

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