CDW Government, Inc. (CDW-G) has announced the publication of the 2008 School Safety Index Self-Assessment Tool, enabling school and community leaders to take CDW-G’s School Safety Index survey and receive an instant score showing how their school or district compares to the national school safety average, which CDW-G reported in May.

Using the self-assessment tool, school leaders, parents and policy makers answer 12 questions about physical and cyber safety. Each question highlights an indicator of strong school safety programs, as well as the barriers to improved school safety. The self-assessment results are meant to spark discussion about school security at the local school level. The CDW-G School Safety Index Self-Assessment Tool is online at www.schoolsafetyindex.com.

The CDW-G School Safety Index Self-Assessment Tool scores schools and districts on eight safety indicators, or strengths, and four contraindicators, or weaknesses:

* Cyber Security Indicators

District Cooperation

Data Monitoring

Network Access

User Authentication

Education

* Physical Security Indicators

Security Tools

Local Authority Communication

Emergency Communication

* Cyber Security Contraindicators

IT Breaches

IT Barriers

* Physical Security Contraindicators 

Physical Breaches

Physical Barriers

CDW-G surveyed more than 400 district IT and security directors to arrive at the national school safety average, which was published in the School Safety Index report in May. For a complete copy of the survey report, visit www.cdwg.com/schoolsafetyindex.

Source: CDW-G, www.cdwg.com/