Latest news with #StudentSafety
Free Malaysia Today
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
PAS leader calls for CCTV in boarding schools after Zara's death
Hundreds of people gathered in front of the Sogo shopping complex in Kuala Lumpur for a rally over the death of Zara Qairina Mahathir. Many were dressed in black and held placards and wore headbands saying 'Justice for Zara' and 'stop bullying'. KUALA LUMPUR : Selangor PAS Youth chief Sukri Omar has urged the government to install closed-circuit TV systems at all boarding schools to ensure student safety. Speaking at the 'Justice for Zara' gathering here today, he said the death of Form 1 student Zara Qairina Mahathir at a school hostel in Sabah had highlighted serious gaps in the safety of children at boarding schools. 'The education ministry needs to be accountable for this incident,' said Sukri. 'Nobody is above the law, and those responsible for Zara's death should be punished.' Selangor PAS Youth chief Sukri Omar at the 'Justice for Zara' solidarity gathering in Kuala Lumpur over the death of a schoolgirl at a hostel in Sabah last month. (Facebook pic) Zara died in hospital a day after she was found unconscious at 4am on July 16, allegedly after falling from the third floor of her school's hostel in Papar, Sabah. Police said a task force investigation had uncovered elements suggesting that Zara may have been a victim of bullying before her death. Hundreds of participants gathered in front of the Sogo shopping complex in Kuala Lumpur for the rally in solidarity over Zara's death. A police estimate put the attendance at 150-200 people. Many wore black clothes, held placards and wore headbands saying 'Justice for Zara' and 'stop bullying'. The gathering was organised by a group of 100 Malay-Muslim NGOs aimed to show continued moral support and unity for Zara and her family. The organisers also called for justice to be pursued at the highest level. The gathering which lasted for about three hours, ended at 11pm. Last week, Zara's body was exhumed on the order of the Attorney-General's Chambers, to allow for a post-mortem. An inquest has also been ordered to be held, to determine the cause of death and whether there were criminal elements involved. On Wednesday, Bukit Aman criminal investigation department director M Kumar said the officer in charge of investigating Zara's death failed to follow proper procedure by not requesting a post-mortem – which was required as the death occurred under suspicious circumstances. He said the post-mortem results were consistent with the initial diagnosis that Zara died from brain injuries caused by a fall.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
EverDriven Achieves 18% Growth as Demand for Alternative Student Transportation Surges
Expansion into 36 states, record-breaking ride volumes, and new safety innovations highlight a year of purposeful scale and student impact DENVER, July 15, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--EverDriven, the leader in Alternative Student Transportation, today announced strong year-over-year growth, including an 18% year-over-year increase in school district partnerships, expansion into three new states, and a single-day record of 15,051 completed rides. Between May 31, 2024, and May 31, 2025, EverDriven safely transported 32,641 students across 2,076,445 trips and 33,663,023 miles. This includes 17,154 students experiencing housing instability and 10,535 students with special needs. On April 29, 2025, EverDriven set a new benchmark by completing 15,051 rides in a single day. "Our growth is a reflection of the trust school districts place in us to safely deliver their most vulnerable students to school each day," said Mitch Bowling, CEO of EverDriven. "Through a combination of human-led, technology-powered service, we're continuously raising the bar for what modern student transportation can and should be." As the company's footprint expanded to 36 states—including new entries into Idaho, New Mexico, and Minnesota—EverDriven continued to invest in technologies that improve accountability and student safety. Over the past year, 1,279 vehicles across 69 school districts in 14 states were equipped with its AI-powered Camera Solution, improving visibility, accountability, and safety. In tandem, more than 5,300 drivers and monitors completed EverDriven's new English proficiency training program to strengthen communication and service delivery. These efforts reflect a broader commitment to operational excellence. According to EverDriven's 2025 Safety and Operations Report, which covers the period from April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025, 99.6% of trips were completed with no reported concerns. Keeping pace with regulatory change, EverDriven was the first alternative transportation provider to achieve full compliance with California Senate Bill 88. Since May 2024, the company has implemented updated inspection protocols, enhanced driver monitoring systems, and expanded accessibility features to better support students with a wide range of needs. "Delivering safe, reliable service at scale doesn't happen by accident. It takes constant review, rigorous standards, and a team committed to getting it right every day," said Adam Warner, Head of Safety at EverDriven. "Districts trust us with their most vulnerable students—and we take that responsibility seriously. Our safety practices are built to scale without compromise, so families and administrators can count on consistent, high-quality transportation day after day." To learn more about EverDriven and how its solutions support student transportation, visit About EverDriven With nearly 700 school district contracts and over 31,806 students served last year alone, EverDriven is the leader in safe and technology-enabled Alternative Student Transportation. Leveraging proprietary routing technology and customized transportation services, the company has been instrumental in addressing driver shortages, helping reduce chronic absenteeism, accommodating varying bell times, and serving unique student needs related to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, special needs, ESSA, hard-to-serve trips, and out-of-district placements. For more information, visit View source version on Contacts Ashley Haga, Marketing Director at EverDrivenahaga@ 擷取數據時發生錯誤 登入存取你的投資組合 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤
CBC
26-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Parents, teachers protest bill that could bring back police officers in schools
A group of parents and teachers gathered in the rain outside the Ontario legislature on Thursday to protest a bill that could bring police officers back to public schools. Bill 33, Supporting Children and Students Act, 2025, would require school boards to implement a School Resource Officer program (SRO) "where such programs are available." The legislation, which would also give the education minister power to put school boards under supervision more easily, recently passed second reading. The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) cancelled its SRO program in 2017 after staff found that the presence of uniformed police officers stationed in schools caused some students to feel uncomfortable and intimidated. The TDSB declined to comment on the bill on Thursday. CBC reached out to the Ministry of Education for more details, but did not receive a response. Police in schools makes children less safe, professor says Bringing police officers back to schools is regressive and what schools need is better funding not police, speakers told the crowd. "Police in school programs make our children less safe and not more safe," Robyn Maynard, a parent of a child in a TDSB school and an assistant professor at University of Toronto, said. Maynard said studies of school resource officer programs have found that children, particularly Black and Indigenous children, are criminalized for things that would normally be dealt with through everyday discipline. Since the SRO program ended in Toronto schools, arrests of have gone down, particularly arrests of young Black people, Maynard said. "Removing police from schools was a crucial advance of racial progress that helped protect our children, that helped protect Black, Indigenous and racialized students, students living with disabilities, students living with mental health issues, and LGBTQI students from harm and from being stopped, searched, targeted and criminalized for everyday instances of young people being young people," Maynard said. "Police in school programs make our children less safe and not more safe." Maynard said the legislation "will criminalize children while undermining the democratic decision making of school boards. It's dangerous to Black, Indigenous and all children. Black students' lives matter, Indigenous students' lives matter. Students need support and not policing in their place of learning. And we are here to say that we will not go back." Sabreina Dahab, a trustee for the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board, said the legislation is not about safety but about control, surveillance and militarization of schools. In 2020, the board voted to revoke permission for Hamilton police to operate its SRO program in its public schools. "We can fight for and build an education system that is rooted in care, in equity and in dignity for all those and that does not involve cops with guns in our hallways," Dahab said. Reinstating program would involve review, police say Toronto police say there are currently no school resource officer programs running in any schools in the city. "We do not currently have SROs in schools, and any change to that status would require a comprehensive review of needs and resources as part of our regular, annual budget discussions," Stephanie Sayer, spokesperson for the Toronto Police Service, said in a statement on Thursday. "That said, meaningful youth engagement continues, and we remain committed to working collaboratively with our city and provincial partners to support school safety in Toronto. Many of our divisional and Neighbourhood Community Officers maintain strong relationships with schools across the city." The bill itself reads: "A requirement is added for boards to work with local police services to provide them with access to school premises, permit them to participate in school programs and implement school resource officer programs." Supporters of the legislation said the bill will enhance safety. Clayton Campbell, president of the Toronto Police Association, said the organization fully supports the reintroduction of police in Toronto schools. "The TPS School Resource Officer Program was a success in its day and the decision to cancel it was short-sighted and entirely influenced by a very loud and vocal group of advocates. We had overwhelmingly positive feedback from teachers, students, and parents because our officers were valuable members of the school community," Campbell said. "They took a leadership role in running programs such as anti-bullying, music, sports, community outreach initiatives, restorative justice circles, tutoring, and breakfast clubs. Every day we see younger and younger people getting involved in very violent crimes, if anything can be done to identify and redirect children and youth to better pathways, the safer everyone will be." But Alex Da Costa, a professor in the faculty of education at the University of Alberta, said extensive studies question the effectiveness of police in schools. "Especially in the United States, putting SROs in schools increases punitive forms of discipline, where principles and teachers will turn to the police officer in their school to help them with things that they might not have turned to them for in the past," Da Costa said. Da Costa said the legislation, along with criminalizing children for everyday conflicts, may prompt many students to stop coming to school entirely.
Arab News
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
India relocates students in Iran as Israel strikes continue
New Delhi said Monday its diplomats were helping some Indian students relocate out of harm's way in Iran, which has come under days of deadly Israeli bombardment. Tehran has hit back with strikes against Israel since it unleashed waves of attacks against Iran on Friday, sparking global alarm that the conflict could erupt into a regional war. New Delhi, which has relations with both countries, has sought to relocate its citizens within Iran after Tehran closed its airspace. 'The Indian Embassy in Tehran is continuously monitoring the security situation and engaging Indian students in Iran to ensure their safety,' a foreign ministry statement said. 'In some cases, students are being relocated with (the) Embassy's facilitation to safer places within Iran,' the ministry added. There are around 10,000 Indian citizens in Iran, according to government data last year, while figures from 2022 listed more than 2,000 students in Iran. New Delhi on Friday said it stood ready 'to extend all possible support' to both countries, as it urged them to 'avoid any escalatory steps.' 'Existing channels of dialogue and diplomacy should be utilized,' said foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal. Iran's health ministry has reported at least 224 people killed in Israeli strikes, while Israeli authorities have tallied more than a dozen deaths since Tehran began its retaliatory attacks Friday.
Al Arabiya
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
India relocates students out of Iran after deadly Israeli bombardment
New Delhi said Monday its diplomats were helping some Indian students relocate out of harm's way in Iran, which has come under days of deadly Israeli bombardment. Tehran has hit back with strikes against Israel since it unleashed waves of attacks against Iran on Friday, sparking global alarm that the conflict could erupt into a regional war. New Delhi, which has relations with both countries, has sought to relocate its citizens within Iran after Tehran closed its airspace. 'The Indian Embassy in Tehran is continuously monitoring the security situation and engaging Indian students in Iran to ensure their safety,' a foreign ministry statement said. 'In some cases, students are being relocated with (the) Embassy's facilitation to safer places within Iran,' the ministry added. There are around 10,000 Indian citizens in Iran, according to government data last year, while figures from 2022 listed more than 2,000 students in Iran. New Delhi on Friday said it stood ready 'to extend all possible support' to both countries, as it urged them to 'avoid any escalatory steps.' 'Existing channels of dialogue and diplomacy should be utilised,' said foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal. Iran's health ministry has reported at least 224 people killed in Israeli strikes, while Israeli authorities have tallied more than a dozen deaths since Tehran began its retaliatory attacks Friday.
