Describes four areas of work that are central to developing a whole-school youth development approach and includes hyperlinks to tools that can be modified and adapted to support efforts to pursue a youth development approach in a particular setting.

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Defines and describes the components of school connectedness and identifies specific actions that schools can take to increase school connectedness.

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Encourages schools’ use of social media services like Facebook as a new channel for two way conversation between school staff and students, family members, or community members that will promote involvement, and also, as a way for school staff and officials to become promptly aware of any concerns community members are discussing and address them quickly. Provides guidelines for how school staff and officials should use social media like Facebook and what behaviors should be avoided.

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Helps program staff identify causes, types, and effects of peer conflict and aggressive behaviors, provides information on how to assess the prevalence of such behaviors, and discusses ways to promote positive peer conflict resolution techniques.

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Informs educators about the impact of deployment on military families and to provide them with strategies of overcoming the challenges their students face.

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Answers questions about school connectedness and identifies strategies school districts and administrators can use to foster it among their students.

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Identifies several components that, when effectively addressed, provide schools with the foundation and building blocks needed to create and maintain safe schools.

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Provides guidance for improving students’ relationships with teachers to promote students’ academic and social development.

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Includes a complete workshop module, handouts and instructions, as well as real-life scenarios and information about warning signs and symptoms, common myths about teen prescription drug abuse, brochures and sample promotional materials.

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Identifies the various terms, constructs, and instruments used in the study of student connection to school.

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Defines and describes parent engagement and identifies specific strategies and actions that schools can take to increase parent engagement in schools’ health promotion activities.

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Examines how student attitudes about personalization and advisory were related to academic outcomes.

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Suggests strategies and provides numerous resources for building the protective factors associated with child abuse prevention.

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Describes how four factors—presence of a caring adult, school connectedness, school success, and religiosity—affect girls’ propensity towards delinquency.

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Presents six evidence-based strategies that could be implemented to increase students’ sense of connectedness to school, along with specific actions that can be taken to implement each of the strategies.

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Provides critical information and resources to help schools in creating safe and healthy environments for students. It is a publication of the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Safe and Healthy Students.

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Helps parents and teachers recognize and address problems in children and teens affected by trauma after an act of violence; describes signs of stress reactions that are common in young trauma survivors at different ages, and offers tips on how to help.

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Equips prevention professionals, healthcare providers, and educators with information on current health issues among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) populations. Includes an overview of terms related to gender identity and sexual expression.

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Provides an overview of the systems of care program and how youth and their families improve on various behavioral and mental health outcomes a result of receiving services in systems of care.

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Presents statistics on consultants (e.g., parent, friend, sibling) that teens talk to about serious problems, including substance use; examines if cigarette, alcohol, and drug use varies with choice of consultant and if the choice varies with age and gender.

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Examines students’ perceptions of personalization and, specifically, advisory as a reform strategy and its relationship to students’ academic progress.

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Examines research on peer mentoring programs, highlighting their benefits and noting conditions and components of successful programs.

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Provides national data about how public school districts identify students at risk of dropping out, programs used specifically to address the needs of students at risk of dropping out of school, the use of mentors for at-risk students, and efforts to encourage dropouts to return to school.

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Examines buffering influences of positive parental relations and positive school climate on mental health outcomes for high school students who are questioning their sexual orientation.

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Presents analyses of survey data regarding how students experience social and emotional conditions for learning, and the relationship of these conditions to academic outcomes.

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Analyzes school improvement plans in five Midwest Region states and reveals that more than 90 percent of plans included at least one “potentially effective” parent involvement activity and 70 percent included at least one extended learning activity (a before-school, afterschool, or summer program).

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Illustrates the relationship between student experience of support from teachers, student engagement, and academic achievement among elementary and middle school students.

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Explores the association between two dimensions of school connectedness – perceived teacher support and social belonging – and participation in adolescent health-risk behaviors.

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Examines the influence of teachers’ beliefs about aggression and withdrawal and overall caring and support of students on children’s social behaviors, to include engaging in aggression or withdrawal and reported peer acceptance and self-perceived social competence.

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Explores how and why support groups work so that students can become engaged and succeed in spite of emotional and social protections not available in classrooms. Includes sample activities.

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Discusses potential solutions to the practical and legal concerns about opening school facilities for after-hours use as well as strategies and resources for developing joint use agreements, which allow schools to set the terms and conditions for shared use of school property.

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Demonstrates how Olweus Bullying Prevention, Positive Behavior Intervention Supports, Avid, Second Step, and Steps to Respect can be enhanced by a Connected School approach. Acquaints participants with the Connected School ideas and strategies and how to use these ideas and strategies as a unifying force in implementing best practices for creating and maintaining conditions for learning in their school.

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Discusses family involvement in the improvement of school climate, citing evidence that this leads to positive outcomes, lists areas where families can contribute and have a positive effect, and looks at possible challenges to getting families involved and the consequences of not rising above these challenges.

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Presents evidence and logic for school climate’s positive correlation with academic achievement. Examines evidence for and describes characteristics of the school climate variables of “Safety”, “Support, Care, and Connections”, “Challenge and Engagement”, and “Social Emotional Competency”.

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Documents descriptions and links to a variety of guides, briefs, tools, and websites by the school climate content areas of programmatic intervention, measures, school climate (engagement, environment, and safety), and special populations.

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Cites programs and measurement resources for the content areas of bullying, challenging behavior, character education, health, school climate, school safety, student engagement, and mental health.

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Discusses promoting social and emotional learning for academic success (SELAS) and shares thoughts about integreating SEL and PBIS.

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Provides information on starting up or becoming involved in parent teacher organizations.  Offers additional benefits to members.

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Works to expand parents' involvement in school beyond simply volunteering to include having supportive attitudes about learning and more.  Resources include research articles on family engagement, guides, articles, and more.

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Provides support to schools, families, communities and government organizations throughout the state of NY as  a government coordinating agency and information clearinghouse on school safety.  Houses resources like briefs, factsheets, archived webinars, and newsletters.

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Houses free products and tools on topic it calls "Safe, Orderly and Healthy Schools" and serves as a membership organization for teachers, providing members a wealth of resources on teaching, including periodicals and videos.

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Houses archive of Partnerships in Character Education Program grant information intended for schools to design and implement character education programs.

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Provides tools and products as State of Connecticut Governor's Prevention Partnership, including information on mentoring, violence prevention, bullying prevention, and drug-use prevention.

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Information resource of the Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services serving FYSB grantees and others working with at-risk youth and families. Offers articles, publications, podcasts and other tools on topics like Cultural Competence, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Questioning Youth, Permanent Connections, Positive Youth Development, Relationship Violence and Sexual Exploitation, Runaway and Homeless Youth, and Well-Being.

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Disseminates research reviews, provides professional development, and develops tools to helps schools adopt social and emotional learning programs with a proven record of effectiveness.

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Draws on current research on connectedness and resiliency to provide educators with a practical approach to creating and maintaining positive school environments.

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Provides information on programs, grants, and policies addressing drug and violence prevention, character and civic education, and physical education.

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Provides information and resources on youth engagement; youth development, mental health, safety, transportation, housing and employment.

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Supports a wide range of comprehensive services and collaborations at the local, Tribal, State and national levels to provide youth with positive alternatives, ensure their safety, and maximize their potential to take advantage of available opportunities. Encourages communities to support young people through Positive Youth Development.

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Provides an overview of programs funded by the Department of Labor focusing on youth. Offers a bi-weekly newsletter, announcements and potential funding opportunities, information for state and local partners, as well as information on the Federal Shared Youth Vision Partnership a collaborative effort serving the neediest youth.

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Partners with school and community leaders, parents and youth; serves as a source of information, expertise and programs to empower young people to be effective peacemakers and involved citizens who transform their schools and communities.

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Connects caring, responsible adults to at-risk youth in 4th-8th grade for one to one mentoring relationships; supports mentors and mentees ensuring each flourishes as a result of the pairing.

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The Friendship Group -- a club in Bonner Springs, Kan., schools -- brings student athletes and students with disabilities together each week. The club offers students with social, behavioral or emotional disorders an opportunity to practice communication skills and make new friends. About 60 student athletes across three schools participate in the club, and the district soon will make it available as an elective. Read Story

Education Week has released a report that highlights 16 education leaders implementing creative ideas in their own districts. "Leaders to Learn From" highlights strategies undertaken by leaders regarding school climate, curbing dropouts, improving services for students with special needs and improving parent participation. Among the leaders profiled is St. Paul, Minn., superintendent Valeria Silva, who has made major reforms to the district's approach to English-language learners. Read Story

Tennessee state Sen. Stacey Campfield has proposed legislation that would require a counselor or other school official who learns that a student has engaged in homosexual activity to report this information to the student's parents. In a separate section of the legislation, the bill requires that school officials counseling a student "who is engaging in, or who may be at risk of engaging in, behavior injurious to the physical or mental health and well-being of the student or another person" also notify parents or guardians about this. Read Story

High-school students are more likely to enroll in college if they are mentored by college students, according to research by economics professors Bruce Sacerdote and Scott Carrell. The researchers conducted a study in which high-school seniors met weekly with Dartmouth College students to discuss their applications, financial aid and other issues. Even though some meetings didn't start until March, participating students were more likely to go to college. Read Story

Districts and parent-teacher groups can use an online survey to measure the quality of parent-school relationships. Read Story

There is the potential for conflict whenever people collaborate, including teachers, writes Elena Aguilar, a transformational leadership coach. In this blog post, she writes about six education belief systems and how they can lead to conflict within a team of educators. Understanding your own belief systems, as well as those of fellow educators, can help to avoid conflict and boost understanding, Aguilar writes. Read Story

Two years after one of its students died after a fraternity drinking ritual, Cornell University has withdrawn its recognition of another fraternity after a pledging episode in which prospective members were said to have been served alcohol and stripped naked. Read Story

Researchers and administrators talk about how to bring students into the school-climate conversation, from identifying problems to changing behavior. Learn More

Educators enlist outside partners in formal and grassroots efforts that boost morale, achievement, and students' sense of security. Read Story

Students' ability to learn depends not just on the quality of their textbooks and teachers, but also on the comfort and safety they feel at school and the strength of their relationships with adults and peers there. Read Story

Officials in Detroit are reaching out to the school district's alumni network and community volunteers to improve schools physically and act as mentors to inspire students. The Day of Service is set for Jan. 21, and officials say they hope the day allows them to develop long-term relationships between the volunteers and schools. 

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The purpose of these grants is to develop a comprehensive strategic plan to expand and sustain the system of care approach to providing services for children and youth with serious emotional disturbances and their families. Learn More

Preteens who were asked to do three acts of kindness every week for four weeks were happier and more popular among their classmates, according to a study in the journal PLoS One. The findings suggest that performing "positive acts" could even help fight bullying in school. Read Story

There are three things that good school leaders can do to help develop other leaders, writes Joe Mazza, lead learner at Knapp Elementary School in suburban Philadelphia. He suggests in this blog post that they invest in a healthy school culture, which fosters trust and respect among all teachers. He also recommends that leaders invest in relationships and an "outside the box" lens.

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Mean girls and bullies may sit at the top of the classroom pecking order in Hollywood, but a new study suggests in real life, kindness is linked to popularity among middle schoolers.

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Low-income strivers face uphill climbs. Three friends Each showed the ability to do college work, even excel at it. But the need to earn money brought one set of strains, campus alienation brought others, and ties to boyfriends not in school added complications. With little guidance from family or school officials, college became a leap that they braved without a safety net.

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Two communities that otherwise never would have had reason to interact bonded in a way no one expected. Stereotypes that form while living in isolation from other racial and ethnic groups were shattered, expanding students’ perspective.

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Best Buddies is a “global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-on-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” according to the organizations website. At Bells Mill it really is a bridge between the general education students and the students with autism. Read Story

The new District Parent Advisory Committee offers parents the chance to talk to the superintendent and members of the school board directly; and, in essence, become the unofficial diplomats of the community, opening up lines of communication between the district and its residents. A translator is present for Spanish-speaking advisory members, of which there are many. Another opportunity for parents to get involved is Parent Academy, a new education program that teaches parents about becoming more involved in their children's success in school.

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At several middle schools and other locations in the Denver area, weekly meetings of Smart-Girl activity clubs are designed to help teenage girls gain confidence and learn how to handle conflicts and resist peer pressures in a "safe" space. Activities are run by "near peers" -- high-school or college women trained by professional counselors. "It's all about helping girls help one another, about noticing when one of them needs support," Smart-Girl Executive Director Karen Silverman said. 

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As more white students move into urban -- traditionally non-white -- neighborhoods and attend nearby public schools, the longtime goal of successful school integration looms as a possibility, according to Jennifer Burns Stillman, an author and research analyst at the Office of Innovation in the New York City Department of Education. However, she writes, the challenge is to effectively manage the different needs of families from different backgrounds and weave together "extremely different groups of people."  Read Story

Academic Parent-Teacher Teams can help parents learn to work with teachers to support their children, writes Anne O'Brien, deputy director of the Learning First Alliance. Under the model, a classroom team is formed, including the teacher and parents, who meet as a group, O'Brien writes. Teachers also hold at least one 30-minute conference each year with students and their families to discuss the student's performance and establish plans for improvement. The model has grown from one Phoenix school district to five states and Washington, D.C.

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Hurricane Sandy devastated communities along the east coast, and kept New Jersey and New York students out of school for a week or more. Families went umpteen days without power or heat. In Belmar, N.J., Belmar Elementary School teachers went door-to-door, offering help to their students victimized by the storm. For those who need shelter and hot food, the teachers were able to bring about 50 students to the still powerless school for lunch -- and reading.

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Successful turnarounds of struggling high schools hinge on fostering environments where teachers and students are supported, and parents and community members are engaged, suggests Charles Payne, a University of Chicago professor and affiliate of the university's Urban Education Institute. "You can create all the pockets of good instruction you want, [but] if the organizational environment doesn't support [the change], it is likely to destroy it," he said. Culture change requires a combination of teacher collaboration, community connections, rigorous instruction, supportive leadership and safe environment, he said.

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The U.S. Department of Education has announced 20 awards in the latest round of its Investing in Innovation competition, and proposals that pledge to improve outcomes for English-language learners are well-represented in the winners' circle. Two winning projects focus on family engagement, with one of these also focused on school culture.

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Los Angeles officials are using parent centers to help engage parents in their children's education and help improve students' achievement. The centers, officials say, help to serve the needs of parents, who may be from low-income families or may be unable to speak English and need help feeling comfortable on campus. There are 576 such centers on campuses in the L.A. Unified School District. 

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Los Angeles officials are using parent centers to help engage parents in their children's education and help improve students' achievement. The centers, officials say, aim to serve the needs of parents, who may be from low-income families or may be unable to speak English and need help feeling comfortable on campus. There are 576 such centers on campuses in the L.A. Unified School District. Read Story

A leadership development class at Burlington High School in Iowa is doing more than building leaders among the 19 enrolled students. It is changing Burlington High School's environment as students -- nominated for the program by teachers and representing all grades, socioeconomic status and genders -- learn to identify problems and present solutions to the school board. Burlington was one of 20 Iowa high schools to receive funding from the Iowa Safe and Supportive School Program. Read Story

The Michigan Department of Education will pilot the "think.respect" campaign in 23 schools, in part, to help support students who may be struggling academically because of other issues. Funded by a $24 million U.S. Department of Education grant, the schools will spend the next three years creating programs to engage parents and students, prevent bullying and support students who exhibit behavioral issues. Read Story

Students at two Illinois middle schools have formed clubs focused on providing nurturing, supportive environments for students. The Friends of Rachel clubs stem from a national program, Rachel's Challenge, which encourages students to interact with each other in positive ways. Some student projects undertaken as part of the clubs include mentoring, putting nice notes on students' lockers and reaching out to bullies.

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The United States must move past its focus on minimum achievement standards for all and put more energy behind identifying and developing the talent of students who are capable of more—especially students from low-income backgrounds and students learning English, the National Association for Gifted Children said in a new directive this week. The report goes into some interesting detail about the psychological and emotional support talented students from minority and low-income families may need.

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Whole child programs project manager Klea Scharberg speaks with members of the Special Olympics National Youth Activation Committee about the importance of positive school culture in the latest episode of the Whole Child Podcast. You'll hear what this term means to each of them and delve into topics of student voice and leadership.

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They have the right mindset, they understand how to connect with students, and they maintain a realistic perspective. These are just a few of the strengths that excellent educators who teach in challenging schools share, explain Gail L. Thompson and Cynthia Thrasher Shamberger. In their ASCD Express article, Thompson and Thrasher Shamberger explain what can be learned from these strong educators. 

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Working with challenging students -- from drug-addicted students to traumatized children in elementary school -- has shown a need for patience, writes educational consultant and coach Jeffrey Benson. "Our role as educators is to align with the healthy potential in each student and hang in while they gradually find shelter in our expectations and caring, in our structures and hopes. It's not a straight line. It may take 100 repetitions," he writes.

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The personal contact between teacher and student, even if it’s for 15 seconds, pays educational dividends, according to educational consultant Charlotte Stetson. Effective interaction with students comes when teachers are “present,” as in the moment; work at connecting on a personal level; and look to extend the learning beyond the child’s initial discovery.

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Even as immigration has slowed or stopped in many places, and instructional programs for English-learners have matured, serving immigrant families and their children remains a work in progress in many public schools, especially those in communities that are skeptical, or sometimes hostile, to the newcomers. One of the biggest challenges, educators and advocates said, is communicating effectively with parents who don't speak English—an issue that, in part, has brought recent complaints of discrimination against Latino students and their families to two large districts in North Carolina and one in Louisiana.

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A new office that opened last week will help provide services for families of students in special education in Detroit Public Schools. The One-Stop Support Shop is part of the new Parent Resource Center at Drew Transition Center, and is in partnership with community groups that will help provide services. 

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The Lynchburg City Schools in Virginia recently rolled out a new "Give Me Five" program that is already producing results in terms of parent involvement—and local publicity. Lynchburg City Schools asks every parent of every child for the following: 5 MINUTES—or more of reading to your child and/or conversation about school with your child every day; 5 HOURS—or more of volunteer service to your child's school each year; 5 DAYS—or more of attendance at school events; 5 DOLLARS—or more to the school's PTO; and 5 CLASSES—or more of schooling beyond high school. Brabrand decided to implement "Give Me Five" because he wanted to initiate a system-wide approach to increasing involvement, rather than a school-by-school approach.

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On September 27, 2012, at 2 p.m. E.T., Reclaiming Futures will present the free, 1-hour Webinar “Implementing Adolescent Recovery Supports and Developing Resources in Our Communities.” The presenter, Michelle Muffett-Lipinski, who is principal of the Northshore Recovery High School in Beverly, MA, and co-founder of the icanhelp project, will outline successes and challenges in developing recovery programming within schools and communities, describe responses to mental health and substance abuse issues in schools, and discuss approaches to identifying and engaging youth in need of support.

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The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention invites communities to participate in the annual Lights on Afterschool on October 18. The nationwide event emphasizes the value of afterschool programs, which keep kids safe, help working families, and inspire learning. They provide opportunities to help young people develop into successful adults. 

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Researchers have determined that teachers' expectations for their students affect almost every aspect of instruction and can determine whether students succeed. For teachers who want to alter their behavior toward certain students, researcher Robert Pianta suggests that teachers observe how students interact, work to understand what motivates students, engage with students about the individual interests and find out more about students' lives outside of school. 

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Evidenced-based strategies, such as attendance coaching, social-emotional support, personalized or individualized instruction, and additional learning opportunities that align with classroom lessons and contribute to a well-rounded education, are advancing student achievement in schools with overwhelming poverty. Yet these practices are not being implemented in many high-need schools across the country because there is a gap—an implementation gap—between the research-based supports that students confronting the distinct challenges of poverty require and the time and resources educators have to meet each student's unique needs. Closing this gap requires a willingness among all partners to think in unconventional ways. There are effective resources available to schools, including national-service and community-based organizations that make it possible for teachers and school leaders to implement changes many educators once only dreamed were possible.

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Annie E. Casey Foundation, It’s My Community Initiative, The Innovation Center and Child Trends is sponsoring a public forum to interact with what is known about relationship education for vulnerable youth, the benefits of said education given the disruptive relationships many youth in the foster care system have encountered, and the importance of setting an informed agenda for research, policy and practice.

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"A school's culture may appear too ubiquitous to define clearly, too pervasive to grasp fully, and too complex to evaluate, but it's too important to ignore," explains educator Brad Kuntz. In his regular Education Update column, Kuntz outlines steps you can take to improve your school culture. Ideas range from creating more opportunities for students to serve their communities to hosting study parties before exams. 

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San Francisco public schools saw a rise in standardized test scores across almost every subject this year, and the city's most underperforming institutions have all shown signs of improvement. Richard Carranza, Superintendent of the San Francisco Unified School District, attributes this success to teachers, a rigorous curriculum, coaching for instructional practices, and supports and inteventions for struggling students. 

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Creating a culture where students aspire toward academic achievement and positive behavior that incorporates a restorative rather than punitive code of conduct is a critical aspect of graduating male African-American students who are ready for postsecondary life, experts said during a recent panel discussion at the National Summit on Educational Excellence and Opportunity for African-American Males in Washington, D.C.

(Source: Education Daily, Vol. 45, No. 154)

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New kinds of agreements between school districts and their neighboring communities to share space and assets are on the rise. These symbiotic “joint use” partnerships enable districts and entities such as cities, nonprofit organizations, and businesses to maximize the use of facilities and money, while meeting the needs of children and others in the community. But from joint land-development initiatives to the shared use of building space and playfields, those involved in these relationships are finding their navigation can be tricky. 

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When parents are taught to analyze and understand data like the test scores at the schools their children attend, the knowledge can become a catalyst for positive change.

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Students who skip school may not understand that the act has long-term consequences, according to a report by the organization Get Schooled. The report, based on interviews with about 500 teenagers in 25 cities across the county, found that students who missed more than 10 days of school are less likely to graduate from high school and attend college. Extracurricular activities and being valued by others can help students feel important and want to attend school, officials said.

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This school year is the first that Michigan schools must have anti-bullying policies in place. The Calhoun Intermediate School District, in Marshall, Mich., recently held training seminars on creating bully-free schools by involving the community in the process of prevention.

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An African-American teenager recently told William R. Hite, Jr., the incoming schools superintendent in Philadelphia, that there are more adults working in his high school who could arrest him than could help him fill out applications for college financial aid. That story, shared Monday with an audience of educators, advocates, and state and federal policymakers, punctuated an issue of increasing concern: the persistent vulnerability of black boys.

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There are social and emotional benefits of Artful Thinking, a program that uses a learning strategy of active participation in the arts to increase student engagement with, and understanding of, concepts across the curriculum, David Markus writes in this blog post. Observing the program at an Annapolis, Md., middle school, Markus writes that public creative expression among students who aren't particularly good at it can increase subject-area knowledge, promote collaboration, create unlikely friendships and be great fun.

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Roughly half of American students today are hopeful about their futures, according to data collected by Gallup Inc., while two-thirds of students are engaged in their learning and two-thirds have high well-being. Those three positive traits are closely linked to academic success and should be focal points for educators, the polling group contends.

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An increase in parental involvement at Detroit Public Schools is one of the reasons crime has decreased in those schools, according to Schools Police Chief Roderick Grimes. Independent surveys of 3,144 parents demonstrated that parent engagement in school programs increased by 30 percent from the 2010-11 to the 2011-12 school year, a release from DPS indicates. At the same time, overall on-campus incidents were down 10 percent in the district's schools from the 2010-11 to the 2011-12 school year.

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The Bridgeport (Conn.) Board of Education night unanimously passed a new parent-engagement policy for the Bridgeport Public Schools that was conceived of, written, and lobbied for by a diverse group of parents. Among the provisions of the policy are "a more welcoming school environment" and "a parent survey."

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Some Kansas City, Mo., teachers recently got an early look at their new students as they took a bus tour of the neighborhood where those students live. Led by police officers, the tour took the mostly suburban teachers past boarded up homes and motels, where they learned some of their students live. The teachers are assigned to the newly formed Central Academy of Excellence and principal Linda Collins said she wanted teachers to understand why students "don't look like you, don't talk like you and don't think like you. Because they have other things on their minds." 

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Federal officials are sponsoring a new grant competition designed to promote collaboration between charter schools and traditional public schools that want to work together to improve academic achievement and overall educational services. Department officials say many of the strategies for collaboration, such as coordinating lesson planning for schools with similiar populations, examining how school climate could be improved, or arranging regular meetings to share ideas, won't necessarily cost a lot of money.

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Maurice Elias, a professor in Rutgers University's psychology department, in this blog post shares insights into improving academic achievement for children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. He shares an interview with James Comer, who was successful in raising achievement of students who were from low-income -- primarily minority -- families. In the interview, Comer attributes his success to a collaborative program focused on "climate, the academic program, and staff development."

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In an excerpt from his book, "Failure Is NOT an Option: 6 Principles for Making Student Success the ONLY Option," HOPE Foundation founder Alan Blankstein outlines five ways school leadership can build trusting relationships with teachers to achieve long-term success. He describes how a school's leadership team instituted "learning walks," to provide feedback in a nonthreatening way.

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The U.S. Department of Education got 242 applications for a slice of the nearly $60 million in funding for the program, which helps communities pair education with other services, including pre-kindergarten, health, and arts education. That's a slight increase over last year.

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Rosa Parks Elementary in Portland, Ore., is more than just a school, it's the center of a community.

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Education researchers at the University of Wyoming this fall will be studying how students in nine Title I schools respond to a program that teaches their parents how to help their children succeed. The program will provide parents and other family members with monthly training sessions on how to achieve Judy Zerafa's "Seven Keys to Success," which include a positive attitude and choices, persistence and goal setting. 

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The search for reliable methods of gauging teacher effectiveness—a dominant education policy issue over the last several years—has centered on classroom observation tools and value-added measures. But another potential indicator has emerged and is starting to pick up momentum: student surveys. Increased interest coincided with the release of a report finding that many U.S. students perceive their schoolwork as too easy.

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The purpose of these grants is to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for improving and expanding services provided by systems of care for children and youth with serious mental health conditions and their families.

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The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will investigate whether the Wake County public schools in North Carolina are discriminating against English-language learners and their parents by not providing adequate translations of important documents.

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The teachers of a 30-student inclusion classroom knew they had to do something drastic to change the classroom environment. With the help of a colleague, they devised an intervention of sorts: a reading-buddy program, pairing their students with first graders for two classes a week. The hope was two-fold: that the fourth graders would assume a leadership role, and see how difficult it can be to teach.

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Some New York City parents of students with special needs who have limited English proficiency (L.E.P.) say schools are not doing enough to ensure adequate communication about their children's education. The parents, who rallied on Wednesday, have filed a complaint with the federal Office for Civil Rights. 

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A study in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior revealed that teen drinkers were more likely to feel like social outcasts than nondrinkers, particularly in schools with tight cliques and fewer students who abuse alcohol. Researchers also found that loneliness and social isolation were directly tied to poor school performance. 

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Steven Sheldon, professor and research scientist, Center for Social Organization of School, Johns Hopkins University and Karen L. Mapp, lecturer on education, Harvard University will discuss why parent engagement matters, point to promising practices that schools and districts are using in this area, and explore how schools can move beyond these practices to develop systems that support the engagement of families and communities in students’ education.

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In Wake County, North Carolina, parents who are not fluent in English do not receive the translation services they need to understand some public school documents involving their children, says a complaint filed against the district today with the U.S. Department of Education's office of civil rights by a pair of advocacy groups.

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The students delighted in giving Duncan homework: They want his office to collect data on episodes of bullying, harassment, and discrimination of LGBT students, perhaps as a part of the Civil Rights Data Collection, something Duncan said he would explore. Duncan said he also liked students' suggestion that they talk to teachers about their experiences as a form of sensitivity training.

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Children with physically active friends were six times more likely to be active during an after-school program, U.S. researchers reported in the journal Pediatrics. They interviewed 81 children ages 5 to 12 and found that the activity levels of friends in a social group can lead children to be more active or more sedentary. 

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New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing to reduce the city's after-school enrichment programs in a budget-cutting move designed to save $19 million, or about one-quarter of 1 percent of the total city budget. The programs slated for elimination run from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., and serve 27,000 children, most of them from poor or blue-collar families whose parents may not be able to afford other after-school child care. 

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A new Center on Education Policy report argues that educators and policymakers often overlook the importance of student buy-in and motivation when planning school improvement initiatives. While no one system or incentive will encourage all students, CEP researchers argue that educators should consider what we know about student motivation when designing programs for school improvement.

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Generally, boys and girls become more polarized through their first years in school. Now, researchers have started to explore how to span that sex divide and are finding that more-equitable coed classrooms can have social and academic benefits for boys and girls alike.

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Experts say students leaving correctional facilities face a number of barriers. The responsibilities of the various agencies and schools involved in the transition are often not clearly defined by state or local regulation, and students are left to navigate through vague procedures and cope with a lack of educational continuity without clear guidance or support.

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Around the nation, schools are forming race-specific groups to break through to some of the hardest-to-reach students. By focusing on black or Asian or Hispanic kids, educators say, they can chip away at the alienation that keeps students of color from succeeding in school.

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Several school districts in the Washington, D.C., area and across the country are turning to parents to help fill budget holes created by years of cuts. The arrangement has some concerned that relying on parents' help will exacerbate disparities for students and schools in low-income areas.

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Two nonrandomized trials showed some proof a supportive school environment enhanced the emotional health of students, while some data indicated individual perceptions of school connectedness and teacher support may predict future emotional health.

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State Rep. Joe Harrison introduced a bill in the Louisiana legislature, House Bill 808, providing for a program to grade parents on their required participation in the educational progress of their children. The bill, now in the House Education Committee, is still awaiting a hearing.

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Maryland legislators have proposed bills in the House and Senate that would require business owners to allow employees up to four hours of unpaid leave twice each semester to attend parent-teacher meetings about their children.

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An Arizona county has launched a pilot program in which 60 parents have been recruited and trained to advocate for children's health. As part of their responsibilities, the parent "ambassadors" will advocate for school policies related to children's health. Participating parents learned strategies to encourage schools to provide healthier meals and snacks and to keep playgrounds open during non-school hours.

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While teacher satisfaction has declined to its lowest point in more than two decades, parent engagement is climbing to new heights across America, a new survey reports. And parent engagement turns out to be important for teachers as well as for students. It appears to play a key role for those teachers who are happier with their jobs.

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Duncan said the U.S. Department of Education has asked Congress to double the budget for parent engagement programs in fiscal year 2013 to about $280 million, from about $135 million. The goal will be to replicate programs that help increase student graduation rates—both from high school and college—and that make more children career-ready.

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According to the school's leaders, Talent Development boosts kids' graduation potential by building long-term, trusting relationships between students and staff.

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Students whose parents are more involved in their education earn higher grades, according to a report from the National Center for Education Statistics. Sherri Wilson, senior manager of family engagement at the National Parent Teacher Association, said parents typically become less involved in students' education after elementary school, when they often are required to sign report cards and attend conferences with teachers.

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Arne Duncan sat down today with José A. Rico, the executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, to discuss education issues important to the Latino community, such as early childhood education and parental engagement to improve academic outcomes for Latino students.

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Sheriffs and police chiefs are on a mission to convince state legislatures that investing in early childhood education, such as quality prekindergarten and the federal Head Start program, can be an important crime-prevention weapon—and ultimately save states money in incarceration costs.

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The National Summer Learning Association has just released results of its "Smarter Summers" initiative. The three-year project is supported by a $11.5 grant from the Walmart Foundation, which is used to expand and enhance summer programs in 10 cities, serving around 20,000 middle school students.

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The Corporation for National and Community Service and the White House Council for Community Solutions just released a report called "The Economic Value of Opportunity Youth", in which they analyze the social and taxpayer burdens of "Opportunity Youth"—16-24-year-olds who are "not investing in their human capital or earning income" by working or being educated.

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A new federal initiative aims to provide paying jobs to up to 100,000 low-income young people this summer, a combined effort of the federal government and private companies.

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Parents of children enrolled in Head Start programs spend more time reading, attending museums, and engaging in academic activities with their children, according to a December 2011 paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

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More than two years ago, President Obama pledged to scale up the Harlem Children's Zone's model of pairing education with health and other community services. Now. five communities are getting up to $6 million implementation grants to create new Promise Neighborhoods under the federal program of that name.

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Nine states will share $500 million in Race to the Top early learning grants, the U.S. Department of Education confirmed this morning. They will get grants ranging from $50 million to $100 million, based on the state's student population, to significantly improve early-education programs in their states.

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Detroit will keep some public schools open during the holidays to offer academic services, free meals and food baskets to students.

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OJJDP awarded a total of $20 million to nine organizations to support mentoring programs and services for youth with a parent in the military. The Department of Defense provided this funding to OJJDP as part of a joint effort to support military families.

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There’s no better way, many educators say, to turn distant or unresponsive parents into allies and communicators actively involved in the education of their children. It’s an effort to connect with even the most withdrawn families, who might have immigration difficulties or perhaps feel spurned by the public school system.

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Researchers surveying 835 youths in suburban Chicago and Beijing have found that youths who feel more responsible to their parents stay engaged in school and perform better.

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The legislation would strengthen family engagement in the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which both Congress and the Administration have placed as a top priority this year.

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A new report suggests that schools in even the most crime-ridden neighborhoods can foster safe environments by building strong relationships between teachers and students.

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School safety depends far less on the poverty and crime surrounding the campus than on the academic achievement of its students and their relationships with adults in the building, according to a new study of Chicago public schools.

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ED's Safe Supportive Schools News

The Shutterfly Foundation is offering grants to support children’s education and family-wellness. Grants up to $10,000 will be awarded. The deadline to apply for this grant is June 1, 2011.

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A “community school” relies on ties between its district and churches, social service agencies, nonprofit community groups, and other local organizations that have built a web of support to nurture schoolchildren across the entire district from “diaper to diploma.”

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Gay and bisexual teens are five times as likely as heterosexual peers to attempt suicide, according to new research — but a supportive social environment can cut that rate by one-fifth.

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Teachers do not operate in a vacuum. The environment in which they work impacts their perception of their own level of competence. Having the support of peers, principals, and central-office administrators has an impact on how well they believe they can perform.

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Community organizing plays an important role in maintaining the momentum of school and district reform efforts and sustaining improvements over the long term, a new report commissioned by the Nellie Mae Education Foundation finds.

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School Climate Survey Compendium (as of December 20, 2011)

To assist educators and education agencies in locating a valid and reliable needs assessment that suits their needs, the Safe and Supportive Schools Technical Assistance Center is developing a compendium of student, staff, and family surveys that can be used as part of a school climate needs assessment.  Below is an initial list of school climate survey batteries. (Alternatively, click  here to download a summary table (PDF) of each survey by respondent type.)

Please note that the Office of Safe and Healthy Students does not endorse any particular scale or survey presented in this compendium. Additionally, the database presented is not an exhaustive listing of available measures or survey instruments.  If you would like to nominate a survey that is not currently included in the compendium, click on the link below.

 Nominate a Survey
 

Alaska School Climate and Connectedness Survey