MARLBORO COUNTY, SC (WBTW) – Marlboro County School Board Chair, Lucy Parsons, proposed a program called “Trust Your Gut” at the board’s meeting on Monday.
“The purpose of the ‘Trust Your Gut’ program is to give prior knowledge when there’s a possible threat or high risk,” Parsons told News13. “It’s about knowing ahead of time so the appropriate people can put measures in place to protect children, teachers, and the community.”
Parsons said, through the program, students and community members would text or call a specific phone number, and anonymously report suspicious activity or people that may need help.
“This would be a phone number similar to 9-1-1,” she explained. “Years ago we didn’t have 9-1-1, but now the whole country knows about 9-1-1.”
Parsons said there is not a phone number in place yet. She said the program would focus on mental health, bullying, and school threats.
“It’ll involve a masters-level social worker or counselor,” Parsons said. “They will not do guidance counsel or clerical work. Their sole task will be to carry a cell phone that is dedicated, solely, to people being able to call anonymously, and say ‘look my hair’s standing on the back of my neck over this particular person.'”
Parsons said she’s sat down and spoke with all local law enforcement about the program, and that the group has met several times to discuss the program since February.
“I called all of the Chiefs in the county, and they all contributed tremendously to this,” she said. “They brought their perspective, and the limitations they have. They have to wait until someone has done something before they can do something.”
Parsons said the counselor would work together with law enforcement.
“They [the counselor] will be in a position to contact law enforcement, and together they can research the situation, and see if it’s a genuine threat,” she explained. “I’m sure there will be some people that call in as a spiteful thing, but these people know how to sort those things out.”
The counselor would be based out of Marlboro County High School, but would receive information from all schools in the district.
“They [the counselor] would do educational programs, and telling people how to recognize when problems are arising.” she said. “We’ve all known people that were in trouble.”
Parsons said she is seeking both state, and local, funding.
“I went to Walmart, and they had a grant program, and I spoke with the manager,” she said. “The maximum is $3,000, and he said he’d be the one to approve it, and he could tell me right then he was going to approve it.”
She said the district is applying for a federal grant that could help with school security.
“That grant, and grants like it, will be a way to put hard things in the schools such as cameras, metal detectors, to check out the entrances, and to educate people, don’t let people in the door or put a brick in the door so someone can get in,” she continued. “It’s about educating everybody because we’re all responsible for our safety.”
Parsons said she wants to get the entire Marlboro County community involved, and said there will be billboard advertisements.
“This is not just about schools,” she said. “It’s about the whole community, but the school is a good way to focus the issue.”
Parsons estimated the cost of the program at $200,000 to start, but said it would be cheaper after the first year.
“I’m planning to go out and get donations to help with that, and after the start-up it will be relatively inexpensive,” she said.
Parsons said the counselor, or social worker, will play a vital role.
“This social worker will be rather mobile in the county, and will go to churches and organizations to educate people about this program,” said Parsons. “To make people more aware of paying attention to the people around them, and recognizing when someone needs help,” she continued. “We forget about the fact that all these people that have done bad things needed help many of them end up dead, and they were somebody’s child.”
Parsons said she wants to put tip boxes in every school, in addition to the phone number for students to call.
The Marlboro County School Board still needs to approve the program.
“After we’ve got this in place, and the school board has agreed to go forward with it, then I’m going to other businesses, and asking for donations to help with the billboards,” said Parsons.
Parsons said if the board approves the program, a community member has already agreed to donate a car for the counselor.
The board chair said she hopes the program will go beyond Marlboro County.
“Here’s our plan,” she said. “We want to put it in place in Marlboro County, and then we want to take it to other counties, and to the state department,” she said. “I want it to go national”
Parsons said her goal is to hire a counselor, and have the program in place for the start of the 2018-2019 school year.