BJA - Bureau of Justice Assistance U.S Department of Justice
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tip411 is a Qualified Program for DOJ-BJA Grant Funds

Through its Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), the U.S. Department of Justice is releasing over $34M in grant funds for state and local jurisdictions to prevent and reduce school violence through use of technology. tip411 is a qualified program to provide through the use of these grant funds.

As you may know, BJA is the primary provider of criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions.

The BJA STOP School Violence grant clearly outlines use of this kind of technology, tip411, as a priority.  In fact, BJA plans to make up to 17 awards of up to $250,000 each under its Category 7: Technology and Reporting.  The main objective under this category is “to implement a technological solution, such as an anonymous reporting technology, that can be implemented as a mobile phone-based app, a hotline, or a website in the applicant’s geographic area designed to enable students, teachers, faculty, and community members to anonymously identify threats of school violence…  The proposed technology solution should be used to help prevent incidents before they occur.”

tip411 is a cost-effective web based toolset that allows law enforcement to communicate with, and get tips from, the community across a variety of channels including custom branded apps, 2-way anonymous text messages, community alerts via email, text and social media.

Applications are due June 11, 2019.  To reiterate, tip411 is a qualified program to provide through these grant funds and we have staff on hand to help assist you in preparing your application to include our technology as part of your overall strategy.

Have questions? Contact us today!

Marion County Sheriff's Office
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Marion Sheriff’s Office Investigates Alleged School Threat

Officers from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office acted quickly after receiving a tip of a “possible threat of violence” at a Marion County High School on Tuesday. The tip was received via the Marion County Sheriff’s Office tip411 app shortly after 11 PM Tuesday night.

Using the information from the submitted tip, deputies investigated the claim and determined that no threat against the schools existed. The school administrators were involved throughout the process, being notified of the tip when it was received and were later notified when the investigation concluded.

“The purpose of the partnership with the schools and the tip411 app was done in an effort to help school administrators and law enforcement provide a safe environment for our students in Marion County schools,” Sheriff Bailey stated. “Our students can be the eyes and ears and assist us in keeping a safe learning environment. They can do so without fear of retaliation by using the app, which allows them to provide us with information anonymously.”

“tip411” is an app designed to be utilized by students to provide information to school administrators and law enforcement about threats and offenses such as bullying, violent threats, drug use, suspicious activity, and other such acts. Providers of tips can remain 100% anonymous when sending a tip while conversing with officials.

Read the story from WMFD.com

Inver Grove Heights Police Cruiser
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Inver Grove Heights PD Launches New Text Tip Tool

In a day when technology reigns, the Inver Grove Heights Police Department decided to turn to the devices that are almost always attached to people’s hands to help fight crime.

The department announced via its Facebook page Nov. 7 it will utilize Tip411, a program that allows folks to submit tips the way many communicate most — via text message.

Utilizing phones

Chief Paul Schnell said the program has been around for a number of years and is used by agencies in Minnesota and across the country.

“We know simply that we have a texting culture and people want to provide information, but one of the things that keeps some people from reporting or calling or providing information is the fact that they’re concerned about their anonymity,” he said.

Tip411 allows people to send texts that get filtered through an automated system. Schnell said the department doesn’t know who sent the tip — it can be text or a picture — and the system allows the department to communicate back to the tipster.

The day the post was made about the new feature, Schnell said the department received a useful tip through it. Someone let police know about a dump truck that was stolen from a business on Concord Street. The truck had also pulled down wires.

The department was able to communicate back with the tipster and verify the information. The tipster, however, never had to identify themself.

Tip411 is a product of St. Paul-based Citizen Observer. Schnell said he has used the system in other communities like Hastings and Maplewood, where it helped the department identify a homicide suspect and solve the case.

Use in the schools

Schnell said ISD 199 is also launching the Tip411 program, with the aim of improving school safety at the middle and high schools.

Superintendent Dave Bernhardson said the program was brought to the school’s attention by Schnell.

“Once we had that dialogue, we felt it was a very, very good opportunity for both of us to partner to get great information and obtain information from our kids, when needed,” said Bernhardson.

He said the district hopes students use the new tool as a safe space to communicate with officials about things that are concerning them.

“There seems, I guess we’ll find out, an unlimited amount of things that they can communicate, because in the end we want to make sure everything is as safe as possible for our kids,” Bernhardson said.

Schnell said Tip411 could be a mechanism for someone to report if they know of another student bringing a weapon to school. It could also be used for other things like reporting bullying or a student worried about another student talking about suicide.

“Ultimately, what it does is help create a safer school environment by getting good information to administrators to vet and sort through, and ultimately identify solutions,” Schnell said.

Bernhardson added any information gleaned over Tip411 would need to be confirmed, so he sees it as no different than other means of communication.

Read the full story from LillieNews.com

More School Safety Measures
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tip411 Part of Push for More School Safety Measures in McKinney, Texas

McKinney ISD Superintendent Rick McDaniel and McKinney Mayor George Fuller held a town hall meeting with the public Wednesday night to discuss concerns and suggestions related to the safety and security of children at MSID.

“We got a lot of what we hoped for,” Fuller said, referring to personal observations from those outside the district as well.

Much of the discussion focused on what safety measures the district currently has in place, including the number of new security cameras across the district.

MISD also has Crisis Counselors dedicated to bullying on campuses and a Tip 411 line, which allows students to anonymously report if they hear rumors or concerns about safety and security.

Read the full story from Community Impact Newspaper