Safer School Help Line
A safety resource is available to Ohio Schools that could prevent and alert local law enforcement to a school safety crisis. This resource – an anonymous tip line service – is available free of charge to every school district and public and private school in Ohio. The Ohio Department of Education and the Ohio Department of Public Safety launched the SaferOH tip line that will accept both calls and texts 24 hours a day.
This tip line allows students and adults to anonymously share information with school officials and law enforcement about threats to student safety—whether that involves a threatened mass incident or harm to a single student.
Every tip can remain anonymous. School safety analysts may ask for additional information, but the caller can remain secret or leave his or her contact information for later follow-up.
Calls or send a text to 844-SaferOH (844-723-3764) are answered by analysts in the Ohio Homeland Security’s Threat Assessment and Prevention (TAP) Unit. When action is needed, the TAP Unit immediately forwards information to local school officials, local law enforcement agencies and others, if necessary.
TAP Unit analysts always follow up quickly with the affected school and law enforcement agencies to make sure that the incident is investigated, action is taken and the outcome is tracked.
The assurance that their calls or texts cannot be traced and that serious, proper action will be taken to end the threat is helping to persuade young people to take a stand against school violence.
