Michigan’s OK2Say school violence prevention program received a record 11,671 confidential tips in 2024, a 20% increase over 2025.
“Kids are utilizing the program and they’re seeing that it actually works, that something happens and they’re able to do something and help make a difference in their school and really prevent tomorrow’s tragedy today by using the program,” said OK2Say Administrator Mary Gager Drew. The annual report was released Monday.
Drew said promotional efforts to draw attention to the program appear to be working and students are growing increasingly comfortable leaving tips via voicemail, texts, a website or a mobile phone app.
The report said bullying (2,005) and suicide threats (1,608) were the subjects of the most common messages to the tipline in 2024. That was followed by 1,376 tips in a general category that covers things like harassment, depression and anxiety. The final two classifications were 1,301 drug-related tips and 1,059 tips related to sexual assault/misconduct/exploitation.
“You know, 70% of the time, schools are unaware of a situation before the OK-2-Say tip, and so once schools are made aware they are doing a great job in terms of addressing the needs of the kids and trying to resolve those issues,” said Drew.
In 25 instances, tips led to confiscating weapons, and 228 resulted in the seizure of drugs or alcohol. The report said tips also led to 236 schools conducting comprehensive threat or suicide assessments.
The tips are first examined by Michigan State Police technicians who then share the information with school officials, law enforcement and mental health agencies. Often, said Drew, the tips do not require a crisis intervention.
“They submit a tip acting in good faith saying we’re worried, they wanted to help make a difference, but once the school took a look at the situation, it may have been a student was talking about gaming, for example,” she said. “So, even though it was not school violence, somebody was trying to do the right thing.”
The Michigan State Police faces a lawsuit filed by the family of a student murdered in the 2021 Oxford High School shooting. The family of Hana St. Juliana alleges the Michigan State Police failed to fulfill a legal obligation to act on information left on the OK2Say tipline that could have averted the mass shooting.
Last month, the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled the wrongful death lawsuit can go forward. The MSP would not comment on a pending legal action.
