Summerville High School plans to introduce a new app and website called STOPit. STOPit is a program that allows students to anonymously report things that are going on, inside and outside of school.
Summerville’s principal, Mr. Christopher explained what the app is.

“STOPit is an app that is used for anonymous reporting or a tip line, so that anybody–parents, students, staff members–can anonymously report information to administration about anything that can be concerning; from physical safety to information that we should have on mental health, bullying, all the above. It’s a way to still give the information that’s needed, so admin can help keep everyone safe and it protects the person reporting it,” Mr. Christopher stated.
The point of the app is to get insight into problems that have occurred or may occur so that they can hopefully be prevented and stopped before they escalate.
Summerville has chosen to take on this app because it was something that has been long coming and it was a statewide program opportunity; the program was offered to communities throughout California.
“We figured it wouldn’t hurt anything and it’d be an addition to what we already do,” Mr Christopher said.
STOPit can be used as another form of security and safety, adding more onto what Summerville already has. The program can also be used for serious school events like lockdowns, threats of people on campus or fires, an extra way to get police or firefighters onto the campus as quickly as possible.
Rumors are also encouraged to be reported, even if it is not confirmed to be true; it is better to be safe than sorry, to ultimately prevent serious consequences and stop them in the early stages.
You can also report things about yourself, such as if you are feeling like doing something bad to yourself or if you feel like you are going to harm another student. The goal of this self-reporting is so that students can get the help that they need to be safe and well.
This app can help with preventing fights, saving others and even helping yourself with issues you wouldn’t typically seek help with.
Since the reporting on this app is anonymous, questions arose on what happens if people use it not for its intended purpose?
“There’s a third party screener that goes through it too and can determine whether or not it is a true emergency situations, and I’ll be notified directly if there’s a big emergency I need to address right away,” Mr. Christopher stated.
Now there’s another question; Who is this third party?
“I know law enforcement is one of the parties, I don’t know of any other parties, to my knowledge it is just law enforcement because they are a part of our partnership, it’s through our joint powers authority, which is our insurance [for] our four counties involved,” said Superintendent Merrill.
Law enforcement will be able to help with serious situations and can be on call if anything happens.
Now, many speculate how well this app will even work. How do they get help? How do they know it works?
“Law enforcement can communicate back, they don’t know who they’re communicating with, but they can communicate back, so they can start a chain of communication [to get more information so] they can assist and find out the proper protocols to take,” Superintendent Merrill said.
“When I was going through the training and set up process there were a lot of examples from a lot of schools across California that use it, so it seems like it works pretty well from everything that I can tell,” Mr. Christopher said.
Summerville isn’t the only school using STOPit
“I don’t know which ones, but I know several of the other schools in the county use it. All the schools in Tuolumne county are apart of it,” Mr. Christopher stated.
Sonora High School, Summerville Elementary, Twain Harte and Soulsbyville are the schools known so far that are either looking into or are going to use the app.
The administrators have all expressed their positive opinions on this new app. Stating that this will help out the school and hopefully make it an even better place than it already is
“I’m excited. It’s going to be great. Students have a hard time coming to tell admin and teachers if something is going on with them or to them or their friends, so maybe this will be a way for students to speak up and not be afraid,” Ms. Weller said.
The new app will go under way on Monday, Dec. 18. Students will watch an introductory and informative video during their flex period on Monday, Dec. 18. Many at Summerville hope that this new app will be a great resource for students and parents both inside and outside of school.