Amy Schell expands safer school advocacy with new volunteer program

Amy Schell, founder and president of the Foundation for Safer Schools, is combining her insurance leadership background with nonprofit work to push school safety education across the Inland Northwest and beyond. The organization’s new Parents on Patrol program brings vetted volunteers into schools to add awareness during the day, while grants and training efforts aim to help schools prevent threats before they escalate.

Why it matters: - The Foundation for Safer Schools is trying to give students a safer school day by adding prevention, training and volunteer support. - The group’s work targets a broader school safety problem that includes campus threats and Idaho’s fentanyl crisis. - The organization is also trying to help schools that lack enough funding, staff time or training to address safety on their own.

What happened: - Amy Schell founded the Foundation for Safer Schools and leads it while also serving as Senior Managing Director for Farmers Insurance in Washington State. - Schell brings more than 20 years of experience in agency growth and multi-state operations to the nonprofit. - The Foundation now serves schools across the Inland Northwest and says it wants to scale practical safety education nationwide. - In 2026, the Foundation helped secure hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants and private funding for school safety.

The details: - The Foundation is built around three pillars: Awareness, Education and Preparedness. - Schell says school safety should be measured by daily prevention, not only by response after something happens. - Parents on Patrol, or POP, is the Foundation’s newest signature program. - POP uses approved parents, grandparents and community members as volunteer extra eyes and ears at schools. - Volunteers monitor morning drop-off, lunch, playground time, dismissal, bus loading zones, exits and pickup areas. - Volunteers alert school officials when something seems off and call 911 in an emergency. - POP volunteers are not security officers and are not allowed to self-deploy into schools. - Every volunteer completes a background check, provides references and attends training led by Dave Reid, who has more than 27 years of law enforcement experience. - Volunteers wear high-visibility vests and carry radios so they can be seen easily and reached quickly. - The Foundation says POP is designed to make students feel safer by surrounding them with familiar, caring adults. - The Foundation also runs the S.A.F.E. Schools Program for teachers, administrators and staff. - S.A.F.E. Schools focuses on recognizing risks, improving communication and clarifying roles. - R.E.A.L. Futures teaches decision-making for grades 6 through 9 using Refuse, Explain, Avoid and Leave. - R.E.A.L. Choices teaches age-appropriate safety habits for kindergarten through fifth grade. - Schell says the Foundation’s growth depends on superintendents, educators, parents, business partners and volunteers. - Schell says the best career advice she received was to “be real.” - Schell advises young women not to wait for an invitation, to raise their hand and to pursue grants and programs even when others doubt them. - Schell has also served on her Chamber of Commerce membership and planning committee, as president of the LATIP organization, and as a member of the Idaho School Boards Association and ASMAT’s Field Development Subcommittee. - Schell also writes about reinvention, starting over and purpose-driven leadership. - The Foundation is offering a free School Safety Guide and inviting schools to learn how to bring Parents on Patrol to campus. - Businesses and community partners can support the programs through tax-deductible donations, sponsorships and partnerships. - More information is available at the Foundation for Safer Schools or by calling 877-664-2024. - Amy Schell’s Influential Women profile is available at Amy Schell’s profile.

Between the lines: - Schell is framing school safety as a community project, not a school-only responsibility. - The Foundation’s model mixes volunteer visibility, curriculum and funding support to cover both prevention and response. - The emphasis on authenticity and “showing up” suggests the organization is leaning on trust as much as on program design.

What’s next: - The Foundation wants to expand its safety education and prevention programs to more schools. - The organization is encouraging schools, parents, businesses and community partners to help fund and staff that growth. - Schell says the long-term goal is to restore childhood joy by making safe schools the norm rather than the exception.