From Requirement to Readiness: Navigating Minnesota’s New School Safety Law

Presented by:

• Blair Freedman & M. Aurora Vasquez, Sandy Hook Promise
• Andy Almos, Superintendent, Elk River Area School District
• Ben Bernard, Superintendent, Rushford-Peterson Schools
• Chip Rankin, Superintendent, Brainerd Public Schools

Minnesota’s new school safety requirements bring important changes for districts, including anonymous reporting systems and annual violence prevention education. Join Sandy Hook Promise to break down what the new law means for schools, learn how the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System can support compliance and implementation, and hear directly from Minnesota district leaders about their experience bringing the program to their school communities. Beyond meeting the requirements, we’ll explore how an integrated approach to anonymous reporting and violence prevention can help build a culture of upstanders—empowering students to recognize warning signs, speak up, and help keep their school communities safe.

About Our Presenters

Blair Freedman – Associate Vice President, Business Development and Educational Partnerships

Blair Freedman is the Associate Vice President of Business Development at Sandy Hook Promise, where she leads strategies to expand the reach of Know the Signs, strengthen district and statewide partnerships, and build scalable systems that increase access to prevention programs nationwide. Blair holds a master's degree in social work and a minor in Business Administration from Columbia University. Blair’s career has been in the nonprofit sector, fulfilling a personal and professional passion for youth services and programming. Joining SHP early in its infancy in 2016, Blair has been able to witness and contribute to SHP’s rapid growth and impact across the country.

M. Aurora Vasquez, Esq. – Senior Policy Advisor

 M. Aurora Vasquez is the Senior Policy Advisor at Sandy Hook Promise, responsible for drafting the organization’s model policies and development of its overall policy strategy. A career nonprofit professional for more than 25 years, Aurora joined Sandy Hook Promise in 2018. The proud daughter of migrant farmworkers, she is a graduate of the University of California Los Angeles and Temple University, Beasley School of Law in Philadelphia.