ltgrossmanOct. 15, 2015 -- County Executive Robert P. Astorino welcomed retired Lt. Col. David Grossman to Westchester on Tuesday as Grossman presented his "Healthy Kids & Safe Schools" training program for more than 200 police officers. Several dozen educators also attended the training, which was offered as part of Astorino's ongoing Safer Communities initiative. The event was co-sponsored with the Westchester County Chiefs of Police Association.

During his daylong presentation at EF International Language School in Tarrytown, Grossman, a former West Point professor and renowned expert on school violence, offered practical guidance to police and school officials on how to keep school buildings and classrooms safe from intruders. The training also included specific strategies and tactics that police can employ when responding to shootings or other violent incidents at schools.

"Safer Communities was Westchester's response to the tragic school shooting in Newtown, Conn., in December 2012," Astorino said. "Since then, more than a dozen initiatives have been launched dealing with school safety, public health and mental health issues. Our approach has been to address violence and its causes in a comprehensive way. Bringing Lt. Col. Grossman to Westchester continues our commitment."

The first Safer Communities event, co-sponsored with the Chiefs Association, was held in February 2013. About 400 law enforcement officers, other first responders and educators came together to collaborate on how to make Westchester schools safer. Commissioner William Bratton was the keynote speaker at that event.

Other elements of the Safer Communities initiative include:

  • The county's departments of Community Mental Health and Health and New York Medical College brought together community leaders from the family courts, non-profit groups, mental health agencies, faith-based communities, education and government for a forum that presented a public health approach to community violence prevention at the Westchester County Center.
  • The Department of Community Mental Health arranged for 300 mental health professionals to view and discuss Path to Violence, a film about a powerfully effective Secret Service program — the Safe School Initiative — that's helped schools detect problem behavior in advance and has thwarted acts of violence.
  • The County Executive, County Youth Bureau, Department of Community Mental Health, Yonkers and Mount Vernon school districts and Student Advocacy kicked off a campaign to promote "Attendance Matters," a campaign to keep kids in school.
  • The county launched Youth Mental Health First Aid training to help non-mental health professionals to recognize and help at-risk youth.