Safe Schools & Communities Resources and Research

Community Connections: Santa Clara County Events and Resources to Support Youth Development

http://www.scoop.it/t/santa-clara-county-resources

By Daniel Willingham - 

Stick a few hundred kids together in a building for six hours and you can bet that a few are going to misbehave. How teachers and administrators should react to rule infractions -- especially more serious ones -- is perennial problem.  A newly published report from the School Discipline Consensus Project, with over 700 experts contributing, offers the most comprehensive answer I’ve seen.
 

The reports starts with two grim facts. First, present practices are ineffective. Policies tend to focus on student removal--suspensions, expulsions and arrests—as a way to keep schools orderly and safe. But while they are removed, the offenders fall behind in their schoolwork, and removal puts them at greater risk for dropping out or getting in trouble with the law."...

For full post, click on title above.

"Project SPIN is a coalition of organizations, the L.A. Unified School District, and community members working to provide comprehensive support for youth who attend school within the Los Angeles Unified School District. Specifically, the coalition works together to bring change to the Los Angeles Unified School District that will positively impact students and end the conditions that contribute to bullying, homophobia, LGBTQ youth suicide and suicidal ideation.

The over-arching goal of this initiative is to act as a network that strengthens the collaboration, communication and coordination among the many existing programs and services designed to support LGBTQ youth in and out of schools through out L.A. County. Project SPIN currently organizes an annual summit and a number of working groups designed to enhance existing resources and to make recommendations to improve systems and expand services."

For main page and resources, click on title above or here: 

http://www.projectspin.org 

The Alliance for the Study of School Climate (ASSC) exists to help schools improve the quality of their climate. In addition to on-going research to understand what creates healthy schools, we provide ideas, resources, and services to schools seeking to examine and improve their effectiveness.

For full website, please click on image, title above, or here: 

http://web.calstatela.edu/centers/schoolclimate/ 

"When it comes to bullying, popular students go after their social peers more than social misfits. That's according to a new study co-authored by a UC Davis sociologist, which also finds that high status kids get harassed more frequently as they climb the social hierarchy. Is bullying reaching a crisis point in U.S. schools? We'll talk with experts about the latest research on bullying in schools, and ask you about your experiences.

Host: Michael Krasny 

Guests:

Rick Phillips, Executive Director of Community Matters, a non-profit based in Santa Rosa

Robert Faris, Associate Professor of Sociology at UC Davis, and co-author of the study (with Diane Felmlee of Penn State)

Susan Eva Porter, Dean of Branson High School and author of "Bully Nation: Why America's Approach to Childhood Aggression is Bad for Everyone"
 

http://www.kqed.org/a/forum/R201404020900

Selected excerpt from NPR News story:
"...recently our public media colleagues at WNYC obtained records showing that New York City's criminal justice system processed 50 percent more juveniles in May 2013, when school was in session, than in August that same year. Two-thirds of all students arrested over the past three years were black. So were more than half of students suspended since 2001 — even though black students represent only 30 percent of the total student population in New York.

Some relate the seasonal difference in arrests to the increased stationing over the past two decades of police officers within schools, also known as school resource officers. As of 2010, about half of all public schools had an assigned officer. WNYC quoted former Department of Probation Commissioner Vincent Schiraldi as saying students "aren't better behaved during the summer than the winter; they're just less surveilled."

Others have linked the school-to-prison pipeline with "zero-tolerance policies" that mandate long suspensions for minor infractions. In December, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder condemned "unnecessarily harsh discipline policies and practices" in schools. "During critical years that are proven to impact a student's later chances for success," he said, "alarming numbers of young people are suspended, expelled, or even arrested for relatively minor transgressions like school uniform violations, schoolyard fights, or showing 'disrespect' by laughing in class."

Some schools around the country are trying new approaches to discipline designed to keep students within a school community rather than push them out."...

For full story, click on title above or here: 

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/06/24/324865857/new-approaches-to-discipline-strive-to-keep-kids-out-of-jail

"Play is nothing if not social. Games organize play, allowing us to wrangle it and use it to experiment with the world. When we play games, more often than not, it's us under the microscope. But there's a trend in design toward video games that build social skills and encourage players to reflect on themselves and their relationships. Here are a few games that do just that."...

For full post, click title above or here: http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/04/inventive-games-that-teach-kids-about-empathy-and-social-skills/

Resources from the Summit are available here: 
http://www.wciconferences.com/BullyingSummit-VirtualMeeting/materials.html 

And the full webcast may be viewed here: 
http://edstream.ed.gov/webcast/Play/900a4030cb1249ed99b5f8f693f4e57b1d  

Join the conversation on Twitter: #BullyingSummit14

And on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StopBullying.Gov 

"In the 2012-13 school year, almost 260,000 student suspensions in California public schools — more than 40 percent of the total — were for "willful defiance" of authority. Willful defiance was the single most common reason for suspension and more students were suspended for willful defiance than for drugs, weapons and violence combined.

Mirroring a nationwide shift from "zero tolerance" policies that grew out of the War on Drugs, some large school districts in the state, including Los Angeles and San Francisco, have banned willful defiance suspensions. Legislation that would end the practice statewide, AB 420 by California state Assemblymember Roger Dickinson of Sacramento, stalled during last session due to fears of another veto by the governor but will be considered again this year.

The Health Officers Association of California, representing the physician health officers in 61 counties and cities, commissioned Human Impact Partners to analyze the results of banning willful defiance suspensions. The analysis shows that such suspensions are not just an educational issue, but have far-reaching impacts on public health and well-being that affect all Californians"...

For full post, click on title above or link here: http://www.reportingonhealth.org/2014/04/29/health-impacts-willful-defiance-school-suspensions

"This learning board includes resources provided at the 2014 Santa Clara County Children's Summit for the "Decreasing Suspensions by Increasing School Engagement: Strategies for Change" presentation." 

Click on title above or here: http://bit.ly/respectyouth  

"An anonymous Twitter account titled “BCHSAnonymous” has been spreading positivity around Boyle County High School since January. No one knew who was behind it -- until now.

During a graduation speech at the Kentucky school this week, senior Taylor Stewart was identified as the serial compliment-giver, according to The Advocate Messenger.

“This year, there has been a senior student walking the halls of BCHS who has really made a difference and most definitely left a trail. This young lady is a great leader, a great student and an even better person, who has veiled herself as the infamous BCHS Anonymous, tweeting uplifting thoughts about various students throughout the school year,” senior JT Henderson said of Stewart, according to the outlet.

Stewart has reportedly passed on the BCHSAnonymous torch to another student who will be anonymously tweeting positive thoughts from the account next year.

"I think if we use our words in the right way there's no telling what we can accomplish," Stewart told KGO-TV."...

For full post, click on title above.

"Not In Our Town’s mission is to guide, support and inspire people and communities to work together to stop hate and build safe, inclusive environments for all.
On NIOT.org, you will find over 100+ short films to view and discuss with your community, more than 50 school films with accompanying lesson plans and activity guides, andsample materials from towns who have stood up—and worked to prevent hate and intolerance from taking a hold in their communities. Special collections include what to do when a hate group comes to town, how to address hate on your campus, and how to start an anti-bullying campaign.

Combining media, resources and engagement programs, Not In Our Town works to create a world where:
* communities are standing together against hate
* students and school leaders are working together to prevent bullying and intolerance
* law enforcement is working with communities to prevent hate violence
 Connect with us at info@niot.org or 510-268-9675 and learn more about how to start a Not In Or Town campaign, start a NIOT group in your town, launch a Not In Our School project, host a screening, or share your story with us."

 http://www.niot.org/project/notonourcampus

By Sameer Hinduja, Ph.D.
"I’ve been working with Adam Sherman of the To Be Kind movement over the last few years, as he is an award-winning educator here in my home state of Florida (and also worked in the county where I went to school while growing up!). He is passionate about creating positive climates within schools to reduce violence, harassment, and hate, and his enthusiasm is contagious and so refreshing to see.  While teaching Leadership classes at school, he spearheaded a curriculum to encourage a peer environment that helps (and not hurts) others, and it has gained significant traction around Florida.

I’ve asked him and a few of his students to share some of their thoughts below. My hope is that it inspires teachers and counselors to identify a cadre on campus that can take this idea and run with it! With the new academic year upon us, I think it is essential to enlist teens to set the right tone early on regarding bullying and cyberbullying. With effort and follow-through, it has the potential to truly transform the school community."... 

For full post, click on title or image above, or here: 

http://cyberbullying.us/preventing-bullying-through-kindness/