By Mark Hyatt
Having our office just a couple blocks north of the White House does have its advantages. Last week I was invited to a special meeting hosted by Vice President Biden’s staff as an advocate for young people. Our discussion centered around “gun violence and school safety”. It gave me the opportunity to advocate for all of us who care about the safety of every child in America. The 13 other attendees represented various organizations that represented advocates for youth nationwide. Most advocated for the kids they focus on—I advocated for all young people. I told the group that as a “recovering school Superintendent, I’ve been thinking lots lately about the catastrophic school incidences that have been avoided (planned bombings, shootings, hit lists, etc.) in our nation’s schools that were averted because the “perpetrator” told someone, and those “confidants” in turn told a responsible adult (parent, counselor, teacher, coach, principal, etc.). If we were to capitalize on that fact, and simply push the need to create a warm, caring, kind, loving, and relationship-centered environment where adults were engaged with students (and vice versa), where students trusted those adults and knew that reported information would be dealt with swiftly, fairly, seriously, and lovingly, then perhaps we could make real inroads in school violence. We know that the kind of environment I’m talking about is the basis for schools of character and CEPs 11 Principles. I was asked to stay after the meeting and invited to a private meeting with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s top advisors. Here’s an excerpt of what we sent to them:
The sadness we felt and still feel in the aftermath of the Newtown tragedy and other such mass shootings will never leave us. But what we can do is learn from and affirm everything the Newtown community did right that terrible day – and everything they are still doing right for their children. In their honor we must begin to place as much importance on character and courage and caring for one another as we do on academics.
Schools where parents, teachers, principals and students work together in an atmosphere of trust are very safe schools. Schools with an intentional approach to creating caring, positive, democratic school cultures enable students to learn not only the academic skills they need to succeed but the personal skills they will need – skills such as empathy for others, resiliency in the face of failure or adversity, and self-control.
Schools that focus on building positive relationships reduce the risk of violence and better enable young people to cope with violence when it happens. How? They give children concrete strategies to use and practice using them and they create an environment of trust among all members of the community. They make it less likely that a child will become so troubled and so isolated that he will decide to take the lives of others or himself. They make it more likely that young people will report to adults when their peers are so troubled and isolated that a violent outcome is possible. They make it more likely students can cope with adversity when it comes their way.
Positive school culture has the added benefit of creating the best possible conditions for learning. In schools that engage stakeholders to create positive environments we see increased academic performance, increased graduation rates, lowered disciplinary incidences, a reduction in bullying, and increased attendance. This is why the Department of Education already encourages schools to take a holistic approach to creating safe learning environments.
It is time in our nation for a new kind of No Child Left Behind. Every child deserves to learn to care for others and the joy that comes from solving problems with and for others. Every child deserves to learn how to resolve conflicts peacefully. Every child deserves to learn perseverance and that others are not to blame for his or her failures. Every child deserves to feel loved and connected to others and to have friends – both peers and adults who care.
