U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., Monday announced that West Virginia University will receive nearly $100,000 to launch a new school safety initiative geared for middle and junior high schools. Byrd added the funding for the project to a federal appropriations bill last fall.

“This effort will allow the West Virginia University (WVU) Extension Service to work directly with teachers, counselors, students, and administrators to craft a practical approach to preventing school violence,”Byrd said.

“Schoolyard tragedies can occur at any school, at any time. Ending this problem is a shared responsibility. Coordinated efforts like this one at West Virginia University can lead to proactive,

comprehensive approaches to classroom safety,”Byrd stated.

“The West Virginia University Extension Service can play a critical role in the prevention of school violence. By launching this pilot project, we hope to create a plan of action that can be followed in school districts throughout the state,” WVU President David Hardesty, Jr., said.

“This focused effort will be a collaborative approach toward preventing the violent tragedies visited upon other states from occurring in West Virginia,”Hardesty explained.

Specifically, WVU extension will develop training materials for staff development workshops to be held at three pilot middle schools or junior high schools throughout the 2001_2002 school year. As a team, WVU Extension agents and onsite school coordinators from each pilot school will conduct specialized training seminars for teachers and school personnel. Byrd added the funding for the project to the Fiscal Year 2001 Labor-Health and Human Services-Education.

“This project will take advantage of the knowledge and insights of those closest to the problemnamely, the teachers, administrators, and students who spend at least eight hours a day in the schools. It will pair their experiences with the technical and research expertise at WVU to create thorough, creative approaches to prevent school violence,”Byrd said.

Byrd and WVU already have hosted a pair of significant school violence prevention programs. In August 1999, they welcomed parents, teachers, lawmakers, police officers, and faith leaders to the first-ever statewide symposium on school safety. That event was followed by a students-only Youth Summit, held in April 2000 at WVU and seven other sites across the state. This new initiative builds on those previous efforts.