See how prayer changes schools…tell us your story!
Pray4safeschools began as a result of the tragic Parkland High School shooting where 17 were killed and 17 wounded. Just months after that, 10 were killed and 13 wounded in the horrific Sante Fe High School shooting. The 2017-18 school year reported 35 shooting deaths! P4SS began our daily prayer text in August, 2018. The 2018-19 school year reported 10 shooting deaths. That is still a horrific number, but is a 72% decrease over the year before. We believe our prayers are a factor in reducing campus violence.
"Our schools are asking "where are the churches?" Patty Sodmont of City Plan responded and mapped out schools and enjoined local pastors and a prayer team to pray. In a troubled FL middle school of 850 students reported in 181 school days: 698 incidents reported, 53 police reports filed, 75% surveyed students didn't feel safe and graduation rate of 69.3%. After only five months of prayer, there were two police reports! Two of the most difficult students were now helping others. Teachers and staff were able to focus more on educating rather than settling disputes or breaking up ights. There was no explanation other than God's peace was transforming the school!"
Liberty Church in Fairfield, CA serves 4 schools with their Adopt A School Program. They are meeting student needs, providing school resources, uniforms, tutoring and mentoring, and serving breakfasts/lunches to the teachers. One school, a continuation school, reported a 54 graduates. The following year they had a 96 graduates, an almost 100% increase. The principal accredited the marked change to Liberty’s life skills mentoring program. Another principal said, “With Liberty, I really feel like we are in this together. They’re onsite and have boots on the ground; they have my back and are by my side.” Still another principal stated that “this mentoring is reaching unmotivated students. These resources help schools to incorporate hope into their plan for the students.” One High School reported that kids were “5x more likely to graduate, 52% less likely to skip school, 27% less likely to begin using alcohol, and 46% less likely to begin using drugs” if they had a mentor.
Marion High School in Indiana was known for being a dangerous school because of all the fights. Claim Your Campus students began to pray for academics, violence and more bold Christ followers. The principal said there was a fight every few days. The thinking was that fighting was okay. He said it had been known for an “F” school for many, many years. It has now become an “A” rated school for the first time in decades. It reported only 2 fights in the school year, and 26 out of 27 students passed the AP Calculus Test. The principal concluded that the result of student led prayer at the school has been nothing short of extraordinary.”
“There is a prayer movement happening in this next generation. School violence has created an increased urgency to pray. PRAY4SAFESCHOOLS is giving students the tools to pray, text and connect with each other for safety on their campuses. US National Prayer Council believes in the importance of mobilizing prayer and encourages us all to pray daily for the protection of our students.”
“First Priority is dedicated to supporting students on and off the campus. We encourage local churches, and the business communities to get involved, come alongside the schools, and make a difference. Our kids need hope, our help and our prayers, Prayer is something we can all do, and is certainly needed. Let’s join together and make PRAY4SAFESCHOOLS a daily priority.”