Erin Gretzinger and Erin McGroarty
State and local officials are focusing efforts to keep children from online spaces that encourage violence, as a Wisconsin agency reports a noted increase in tips about school safety.
This year, tips to the state Office of School Safety jumped by 30%, including nearly 240 tips about concerns of a planned school attack.
In the Madison school district, officials told the Cap Times the school safety tips they field most on a day-to-day basis originate on digital devices and online platforms.
State officials, including Office of Children’s Mental Health Director Linda Hall, say online activity and social media increase the risk that young people will fall into unsafe spaces on the internet, which can harm emotional health and expose them to violence.
“We used to always talk about stranger danger. Now we have to have those conversations with kids, but put it in the digital context,” Hall said. “It’s not just watching out for somebody who might be on a street corner, trying to lure them into a car. It’s what’s happening while they’re online.”