Safe Schools Summit honors Butte student’s death, explores future of school safety

More than three decades later, the seventh annual Jeremy Bullock Safe Schools Summit took place at Butte High School on Tuesday and Wednesday. This year’s theme: “Cultivating Hope, Safety and Connection within Our Schools.”

Among those participating in the event’s workshops were a slew of educators, nurses, administrators, mental health professionals, first responders and law enforcement officers.

Bullock’s parents, Robin and Bill, were also on hand. The couple lost another son, Max, a naval aviator who died during a training exercise in June 2022.

“I wish we didn’t need to have this,” Robin Bullock said of the summit. “But as long as there are concerns about student safety, it’s important that everyone gets together.”

Her husband listened silently while yielding to her comments.

“We thought, ‘There’s still a problem out there. We need to address and treat students as a whole.’ We are so keen on sharing knowledge and collaborating throughout our community,” she explained.

That’s why the Jeremy Bullock Memorial Trust and Charities Through Jeremy were established in the shooting victim’s honor. Those foundations help sponsor the likes of the Safe Schools Summit.

According to the summit’s website, the mission is “creating a safe school environment through prevention and preparedness.”

They’ve been bringing national discourse into Montana and Butte, Robin Bullock said, “to improve schools wherever we can.”

The yearly event and charities aren’t the only memorials to the shooting victim. The J.B. Memorial Soccer Complex, adjacent to Jeremy Way, was established in the mid-1990s. Fundraising golf tournaments have also been held for 25 years.

Kate Stetzner was the principal at Margaret Leary on that fateful day in 1994.

“It’s a passion for me,” Stetzner said at the summit. “Jeremy’s parents and I decided to reach out to everyone, not just teachers.”

The bottom line, she said, is doing “whatever we can that’s positive and productive for schools.”

In a letter published in the summit’s program, Superintendent Keith Miller expressed gratitude to participants and attendees.

“One of the most important lessons reinforced through this work is that school safety belongs to all of us,” he wrote.

Keynote speaker Kristi Krings, CEO of Rachel’s Challenge — which is named after Rachel Scott, Columbine High School’s first shooting victim in 1999 — conducted one of the Safe Schools Summit workshops. Krings’ hour-long session involved “The Anxious Generation” book, along with videos, a slideshow and question-and-answer exchanges with dozens of attendees.

“It’s a call to action,” is how she described the gathering.

She asked the well-engaged audience members — comprising teachers, parents, school counselors and administrators — a variety of questions, such as, “How can you create connections with students in your roles?”

The discourse also revolved their different generations, childhoods, smartphones and a lack of parental supervision.

“Schools have taken on much of parenting,” Krings added.

The event's other keynote speaker was Mark Barden, co-founder of Sandy Hook Promise. His son, Daniel, was murdered during the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut.

Panel moderators for the summit included Ashley Boal, Ph.D, from the Justice and Prevention Research Center at WestEd; state Rep. Connie Keogh, a Missoula Democrat; and Glen Weiner, executive director of Coalition to Empower our Future. Praxis Center CEO Ray Rogers served as the master of ceremonies.

Stetnzer’s daughter, Ericha Anderson, attended BHS in the 1990s is currently on the 2026 Summit Planning Committee. It was a no-brainer for Anderson to get involved with the Bullock memorials and annual summit.

“This isn’t just about educators, it’s a full community effort,” Anderson said.