Educators, students and law enforcement personnel in

Coweta County have a new tool this fall to battle the increasing problem

of violence in the schools.

A toll-free statewide hotline has now been established, offering

an anonymous way of apprising law enforcement officials about

possibly dangerous situations in the schools.

a Department of Education Safe and Drug Free School specialist

who will take down the information and notify the local

superintendent and law enforcement agencies.

The hotline hours will be Monday through Friday from 8

a.m.-5 p.m. After hours, all calls will be routed to the Georgia Bureau

of Investigation.

The program was developed by the Statewide School Safety

and Violence Task Force earlier this summer. Coweta County

school board member Smith Pass co-chaired the task force and

believes nothing is more important than providing a safe

environment for the state's students.

"If we can save one kid or prevent a violent incident, it's

worth it," she said.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation director Buddy Nix

believes the time has come for the hotline and believes the anonymity

factor will make it a big success.

"Providing safe classrooms is a top priority in Georgia.

Often, students have the best knowledge about unsafe situations in

their schools, and once the hotline goes into effect, they will have a

way to anonymously share that knowledge, without fear of

retribution," he said. The hotline is being

totally funded by Worldcom, Inc. for the first year. State

officials plan to examine the effectiveness of the program at the end of

this school year.

Along with the hotline, the task force plans to bring several

recommendations about improving safety in the classrooms to

the General Assembly this January.

The recommendations include:

Conducting a school safety survey in all 180 school systems.

Developing a statewide school systems report card.

Strengthening and placing more emphasis on a character

education curriculum in all grades.

Increasing options and funding for alternative schools.

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