Educators, counselors, administrators, school resource officers, and law enforcement personnel from around New York State attended the 2026 Regional School Safety Summit in Oneonta this week. Attendees learned about best practices for utilizing school resource officers, got a primer on the online digital ecosystem of extremist and cybercriminal subcultures, reviewed data from local anonymous reporting programs, and learned about de-escalation techniques and benefits and recognizing concerning behaviors. Presenters included NYS Troopers Timothy Neumuth and Michael Ellwanger, ONC BOCES Safety Risk Officer Josh Reiss, ONC BOCES Assistant Safety Risk Officer/DCMO BOCES Assistant Health & Safety Coordinator Rick Shaw, and Lori Hamula from Sandy Hook Promise. DCMO BOCES Health & Safety Coordinator Jason Lawrence also spoke.
Area schools and agencies attending the event included Delaware Academy CSD at Delhi, Gilbertsville-Mount Upton CSD, Sidney CSD, Franklin CSD, Greene CSD, Bainbridge-Guilford CSD, Walton CSD, Oxford Academy CSD, DCMO BOCES staff, Delaware County Sheriff's Office and Otsego County Sheriff's Office. The Regional School Safety Summit is presented by DCMO BOCES and ONC BOCES.