About the School Safety Specialist Academy

The Indiana School Safety Specialist Academy (ISSSA) provides ongoing, certified training and information on national and state best practices, high-quality resources for school safety, security, intervention/prevention, and emergency preparedness planning. School safety specialists are trained to lead the development and implementation of school safety practices to ensure safe educational environments are provided for all students in Indiana.

Role of a School Safety Specialist

Every school corporation and charter school must have at least one individual who is not a school resource officer (as described in Indiana Code 20-26-18.2-2) to serve as a school safety specialist. After a school safety specialist has completed Basic Training and becomes certified, the specialist has the following duties according to Indiana Code 10-21-1-9:

• Serve on the county school safety commission (exception: charter school school safety specialists)
• Participate each year in ongoing school safety training
• Develop, implement and improve school safety plans for each school building in a school corporation or charter school
• Coordinate school safety plans of each school building
• Act as a resource for school corporation or charter school safe school committees and other individuals in the schools on issues related to school discipline, safety and security
• Serve as a liaison regarding school safety matters with the Secured School Safety Board, IDHS, Department of Education, Criminal Justice Institute and other state agencies

2026 Basic School Safety Academy

The next Basic School Safety Specialist Academy class will take place Feb. 2-3, 2026, in Indianapolis.

The event will feature a redesigned curriculum and an all-star lineup of speakers, including:

• Paul Timm, Safe and Sound Schools – Fundamentals of School Safety
• John-Michael Keyes, I Love U Guys Foundation – Standard Response Protocol and Standard Reunification Method Overview
• Mike Johnson, Hamilton Southeastern Schools – Implementation of BTAM Teams and Process
• Dr. Bernard James, Pepperdine University – School Safety Legal Update 2026

Registration information will be available soon.

Upcoming Trainings

View full IDHS calendar

Note: Not all events on the IDHS calendar are organized, hosted or sponsored by IDHS or other state agencies. Some events are included for informational purposes as events that the public or first responders may find beneficial.