Is This Anonymous Tool Making Michigan Schools Safer?

For as long as I can remember the rule on the street was "snitches get stitches" and there are plenty of movies, shows, and real-life examples of this phrase being a way of life for some people. Also, for a long time, the idea of minding your own business was considered the right thing to do because you don't worry about things that have nothing to do with you. Eventually, this was combated by the ideology that speaking up and helping someone out who needs it, is the humane thing to do.

I remember being in middle school and high school when our teachers and administrators introduced a program that they called "Fast 50", a program designed to encourage students to give tips to school resource and campus safety officers in exchange for $50. This would work for a while until people started to pinpoint individuals as "snitches" which caused other issues. The state of Michigan took a look at the system and wanted to find a way to improve it. The new system they created seems to be working and having a positive impact.

The Michigan Board of Education and various administrators across hundreds of school systems in Michigan have been working together for years to ensure that students in the Mitten state are staying safe while learning. One of the ways they have done so is by relying on caring and observant students to speak up when they see something suspicious.

Read More: Michigan Cracks Top 10 States for Best Early Education

10 years ago, OK2Say was introduced to school systems across Michigan and was designed to keep them all safe. OK2Say is an online portal that is completely confidential and anonymous, the platform is meant for students to give tips to school resources and campus safety officers. OK2Say has made tons of presentations at schools around the state and said they almost always receive tips immediately after they leave.

OK2Say has seen a 31% increase from 2022 as they had 9,686 tips from schools across Michigan during the 2023 calendar year. The top 5 categories that received tips during 2023 were bullying, suicide threats, drugs, sexual assault, misconduct, exploitation, and threats.

The idea behind the whole thing is just to provide students an opportunity to feel safe in their learning environment, even when they have to say something they don't want to. OK2Say has received over 50,000 tips in just under 10 years of operation and has been slowly making schools safer all over Michigan. Below are the ways you can send a tip on the OK2Say platform which is available 24/7:

• Call: 8-555-OK2SAY (855-565-2729)
• Text: 652729 (OK2SAY)
• Email: OK2SAY@mi.gov
• OK2SAY website: www.ok2say.com
• OK2SAY mobile app: Available for download in app stores for iPhone or Android

There are counselor services from trusted adults and even intervention from local authorities when the actions are necessary. OK2Say is doing the work needed to keep students safe while at school and I'm sure parents can be appreciative of the the OK2Say program.