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• LIFETOUCH CHURCH DIRECTORIES AND PORTRAITS INTRODUCES NEW ONLINE DIRECTORY PRODUCT
• LIFETOUCH CHURCH DIRECTORIES EXPANDS WITH THE ADDITION OF BUSSON PORTRAIT DIRECTORIES
• SAFE2TELL PARTNERS WITH LIFETOUCH TO OFFER ANONYMOUS TIP LINE INFORMATION ON STUDENT ID CARDS
• LIFETOUCH NATIONAL SCHOOL STUDIOS EXPANDS IN SOUTHEAST WITH ADDITION OF BRYN-ALAN STUDIOS
• LIFETOUCH NATIONAL SCHOOL STUDIOS INC. TO CLOSE OKLAHOMA FACILITY

SAFE2TELL PARTNERS WITH LIFETOUCH TO OFFER ANONYMOUS TIP LINE INFORMATION ON STUDENT ID CARDS

Safe2Tell Phone Number Available to 300,000 Students at Their Fingertips

Colorado Springs, Colo. (April 20, 2009) – Safe2Tell™ and Lifetouch, the nation’s largest provider of school photography, are partnering to protect Colorado students by listing the phone number for the anonymous tip line on up to 300,000 student ID cards. Safe2Tell is a statewide program that is available 24 hours-a-day for students and adults to report a potential threat to their safety or the safety of others.

For the 2009/2010 school year, Lifetouch will print Safe2Tell’s logo and contact information on the back of nearly 300,000 student ID cards in Colorado.  This will be a pioneer effort in moving forward for prevention and school safety.

“As we mark the tenth anniversary of the Columbine High School shootings, we welcome the opportunity to offer a tool to students to remind them that help is just a phone call away,” said Special Agent Susan Payne, Safe2Tell executive director. “We developed Safe2Tell to help persuade young people to move away from a code of silence and take a stand.  The overall goal is to empower young people to keep their community safe.”

Safe2Tell, empowers young people to keep their communities safe by reporting any threats to their safety or the safety of someone else, was created after 15 people died during the 1999 shootings that took place at Columbine High School. Calls to 1-877-542- SAFE (7233) are answered by the Colorado State Patrol.  Important information is immediately forwarded to local school officials and law enforcement agencies. Safe2Tell also follows up on these  reports to ensure that they are investigated. 

“Lifetouch and Safe2Tell are dedicated to child safety,” said Kevin Cahill, Lifetouch’s Colorado area manager. “This partnership will help raise awareness for the Safe2Tell program with students, parents and educators across the state to encourage more individuals to use this anonymous system to help keep kids safe.”

“Research shows that in 81 percent of violent incidents in U.S. schools, someone other than the attacker knew it was going to happen but failed to report it, said Payne.  “Typically, the information goes unreported because of fear of being a ‘snitch’ or that the attacker will then target the informant, thereby creating a ‘code of silence’.”
Since Safe2Tell was created in 2004, more than 4,400 calls have been received from 127 cities and 50 counties throughout Colorado. Of those calls, 1,459 have resulted in investigation, early intervention and prevention. Specifically, 28 school attacks have been prevented, 23 arrests were made and 136 school disciplinary actions were taken. 
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Safe2Tell
Safe2Tell™, founded in 2004 to provide an anonymous venue for students, parents, teachers, school administrators and law enforcement to share information, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. The members of the Board are prominent stakeholders from multi-disciplinary backgrounds who set policy and give operational direction. For more information about this program, please visit www.safe2tell.org or call 719-520-7435.

Lifetouch National School Studios Inc.
Lifetouch National School Studios Inc. is based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. The company has been providing high-quality portraits to schools and parents for more than 70 years. For more information visit www.Lifetouch.com.