The anonymous school safety reporting system Safe2Say Something has already forwarded one report to Butler County 911 dispatchers.

Pennsylvania's Attorney General's office unrolled Safe2Say statewide last month. The program allows students, teachers, and parents to submit anonymous tips to a state “crisis center” using a smart phone application, phone number or website.

The state crisis center screens the reports and sends information to relevant schools and emergency dispatchers.

Rob McLafferty, the county's 911 coordinator, said the center has only sent one tip their way.

Because the reporting system assures anonymity for tip submitters, McLafferty was unable to provide any details about the call.

He said the center's work with the county's school districts was going well.

“Any time we have the opportunity to collaborate with school districts and the state to make students safer, we consider that a great opportunity,” McLafferty said.

Mark Bell, the 911 team's training and quality assurance coordinator, noted that more tips may have already been routed to school administrators in the county that dispatchers don't know about. The state's team notifies 911 dispatchers only if the tip was regarding something potentially life-threatening.

“We as a 911 center only receive tips that are credible life threats,” Bell said.

The crisis center sends some reports only to school administrators, he explained, but not to emergency dispatchers.

Bell and McLafferty attended a regional training class for dispatchers that was held in Cranberry Township. They returned and brought their team up to speed with further in-house training.

Trainers told the two men that they might experience a slight influx of calls during the early period of the program, but that soon afterward the tips likely will be limited to only the occasional, serious circumstance.

As of Wednesday, the Butler School District hasn't heard from the state center about any reports, according to Superintendent Brian White's office.

Similar to emergency dispatchers, the school's security team also received state training on the program, according to Kara Droney, the district's communications director.

Butler students will be receiving Safe2Say training early this month as part of the district's ongoing “Rachel's Challenge” programming, Droney said. That program aims to combat violence and bullying by building a sense of community and compassion within schools. It is named after Rachel Scott, the first fatality in the 1999 Columbine High School shooting.

The district is holding a community event centering around Rachel's Challenge at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Intermediate High School Auditorium. Parents and community members are welcome.

School board directors had White briefly describe Safe2Say during their Monday board meeting. He said students would soon start interactive video training.

Safe2Say is a partnership between the state Attorney General's office and the nonprofit Sandy Hook Promise. Similar programs are running throughout the nation and are typically named Say Something or a similar variant.

The program is designed for the anonymous reporting of potential violence, although the nonprofit's website states that common reports include bullying, social isolation, substance abuse and self-harm. The category list of reportable behavior includes a slew of problems, varying from “active shooter” to “sexting.”

The phone app is available on both Apple and Android phones. The app is called Safe2Say Something PA.

Tipsters can also call 1-844-723-2729 or visit safe2saypa.org/tip.