The role of educational leaders in establishing sound prevention practices

We are all committed to creating safe and drug-free schools. When parents kiss their children goodbye in the morning, they want to know that their children will return safely to them that afternoon. Every teacher and principal wants to walk into their school building every day knowing that it will be a full day for education. All superintendents want the same thing: a safe institution where students, teachers, and principals can go about the business of education. But the reality is that every year there are a large number of inappropriate, disturbing and sometimes violent incidents. Statistics reveal incidents in which teachers were the victims, weapons were brought to school, and countless acts of bullying, teasing, hazing, and physically non-violent behavior. What is it that drives our children to commit these acts? Truly, we all know the breadth of issues our students face on a daily basis. In fact, what affects the student outside of the school affects that student, the teachers, and the administrators inside the school. Here are some statistics:

– 1 in 2 American children will live in a single-parent family at some point in childhood.
– 3 out of 5 preschoolers have their mother in the workforce.
– 1 in 1045 will be killed by a gun before their 20th birthday.

Clearly enough is happening here to see that in addition to an academic focus, schools must be attentive to the social and emotional needs of students. We can work with students to help them achieve their academic goals, but if those children cannot cope with the pressures of today’s society, they will not achieve academic success. Yet despite all the media hype to the contrary, schools remain the safest place for our children. But it is also true that the violence that plagues society has slowly crept into our schools. In recent years, drastic changes in the family structure, along with other social changes, have led to new challenges. Schools are under pressure to find ways to meet the needs of all children. Parents and other constituents have found their voice and are crying out for closing the achievement gap. Lawmakers have paid attention and now, more than ever, and states have focused on evaluation and accountability. The work of our schools has become incredibly complex as different stakeholders vie for priority.

A primary goal of the superintendent is to establish a clear vision and direction for the school district. If the vision is derived from the information presented by the various competing groups and is based on scientifically rigorous evidence, that collective vision will be shared by all stakeholders. So the guiding question is: Given the context in which children come to school, what can schools do to help students develop good social skills so that they can interact positively? In light of the changing economic and social structure, it is clear that nurturing, guidance, and support from adults must come from all facets: the home, the school, and the community, if negative outcomes are to be avoided. Our vision is that a healthy community can work together to achieve positive outcomes when guided by the core principles of academic, social, and emotional learning. And we’ve been successful in achieving partnerships at multiple levels: locally, with the county, and even at the state level. We saw a reduction in disciplinary referrals and the dropout rate. And we achieved an increase in the number of graduates and the number of those who go to university. Our goal is to share ways that superintendents can support the creation of safe, supportive, and high-performing schools. While the superintendents had different stories to share, all of their work began with an individual vision that later blossomed into a collective vision for the entire community. Core values ​​such as academic, social and emotional learning are an essential part of the big picture. In the end, what do we hope to achieve? In the short term, we want to make sure our schools are safe havens where all students can learn, and that means safe, drug-free, and violence-free schools. But we must also not lose sight of the fact that, in the long term, over time, the creation of safe and supportive school communities must be integrated and integral, and not simply an add-on. We also want to ensure that we develop lifelong learners who, because they are well educated, responsible and respectful, can be active and contributing members in our 21st century global society. The creation of schools and districts focused on academic, social and emotional learning.

What is the best approach to show the school board that young people are not just a problem, but can make a difference in people’s lives? There is no more important effort than including young people in this entire conversation. One of the things we’re doing is creating a more democratic environment, especially in our high schools, but at all levels. I think it starts even at the elementary level. For example, many schools are using class meetings as a way to bring out the voice of young people. Adults in our society often think that young people don’t have something of value to contribute. Look for adults to bring you forward to the meeting to talk about the kind of wonderful things you’ve been doing and to build those partnerships and not give up. Keep coming to the school board with whatever initiative you want. And keep coming back to administrators to show them that you have something of value to offer. It is key that your voice is not lost in this dialogue. If you want to get the attention of the school board, always introduce yourself and take the three minutes or allotted time for guests to speak. They won’t want to ignore you, especially when they’re running for re-election. Make an appointment with each member of the school board and visit with him or her individually, as they all have office hours. You will have their attention.

The new teachers who came in are very willing to learn. A superintendent or principal cannot do it alone. There have to be teachers in the school who are aligned with these philosophies. Start a pilot program and collect the data, and the data will be very impressive. So the board and other teachers and the community can’t doubt what the data shows. There are many places to plant those seeds. You have to have perseverance.

As superintendents and administrators, we are interested, but we work within a political context. And in fact, there are certain things that we are able to do and certain things that we are not. When I was a teacher, I learned from one of my principals a “let your fast horses run” philosophy. In other words, find the people who are your advocates and let them do the things that they would like to do in terms of social-emotional programming and other areas that you want to advance. Many times we are surprised where the seeds come from. We need to be open to surprises and seek out those people who really care about this but may not know how to proceed and encourage them to take action.

In this country, one of the most important things we’ve done is say that children should be in school in a safe learning environment. It is the goal of almost every district in the country. If that is the goal, then every superintendent must hold the administration accountable for making sure there is substantial progress toward that goal. The director also has to hold the staff accountable. I think we need to start forcing the seeds, not just planting them. Guidance counselors are key in creating a positive climate and culture. They can be instrumental in moving the district forward in social emotional learning. While each district uses different approaches, all superintendents share a common vision: create multiple support structures throughout the system that simultaneously address the academic, social, and emotional needs of all students.