3205: SAFETY AND CIVILITY IN SCHOOLS

Vision

Students and staff shall learn and work in schools that are free from violence, intimidation, threats, harassment and fear. Because of wise, consistent enforcement of the rules and ethical decision making by both youth and adults, the school environment is attractive to students and creates the most favorable conditions in which to learn.

Structure

Building Level: Creating an Orderly Environment for Learning

Each school community is unique to the adults and students who work and study in it. Therefore, each school shall develop a plan to promote safety and civility for all. The plan shall:

1.      Include the assessment of all aspects of the school facility, the daily schedule and the program of instruction and activities which identifies conditions that may pose a threat to the safety of staff, students and guests on campus;

2.      Respond to the opinions and concerns of students, parents, staff and the community in identifying goals and priorities for action;

3.      Establish goals for improvement, and identify how progress toward those goals will be assessed;

4.      Include both the district-level and consistent building rules, plus procedures and systems to be used to assure safe behavior at all times and the efforts to be made to promote ethical decision making by youth and adults; and

5.      Be approved by the superintendent, reviewed and renewed annually and reported to the Board annually.

 

District Level: Providing Leadership and Support for Orderly Schools

Each school’s capacity to implement its plan depends upon the district for leadership and support. The superintendent shall review and approve the schools’ plans and shall develop a long range plan for the district to support those plans. The district plan shall give consideration to:

 

  1. Identification of the financial and human resources needed to support the school plans;
  2. Conducting an audit of the district’s needs and accomplishments for review by the district’s School Safety and Civility Committee composed of parents, students, staff and members of the community;
  3. Establishing regular communications and cooperative agreements with law enforcement organizations, social service agencies, and other groups in the community for the purpose of developing the community-wide capacity to support and reinforce the schools’ plans for safety and ethical decision making;
  4. Assisting each school regularly to survey student, parent, and others’ opinions both to help develop safety and civility plans and to measure progress; and    
  5. Providing curricular and instructional support to the schools, enabling them to incorporate concerns for ethical decision making into the regular learning program.

 

The superintendent shall report to the Board annually regarding progress on matters of safety and civility in each school and throughout the district.

Accountability (Monitoring For Results)

An information system shall be developed to enable each school and the district to assess progress toward their safety and civility goals. Data regarding incidents which significantly impair the safe environment of schools and how those incidents were resolved shall be kept and reported annually. Surveys of student, staff, parent and community opinion shall be conducted regularly both to measure progress toward goals and to review and adjust plans and actions that promote safety and civility. The board shall schedule at least one meeting each year at which issues of safety and civility, the efforts of the schools and staff and the recommendations of the district School Safety and Civility Committee are the primary focus of attention.

Community Advocacy

A district Safety and Civility Committee shall be formed to assist the district in assessing its needs and making recommendations to the board regarding plans and actions to promote safety and civility. The Committee shall include staff, parents, students and community leaders with particular information or experience to contribute to the work of the Committee. A specific task of the committee shall be to establish the range of corrective actions to be imposed for exceptional misconduct by students.

 

Schools shall involve students, staff and parents in the development of their plans to promote safety and civility. Polling, community meetings and participation in the meetings of other organizations shall be used to understand the public’s concerns and expectations and to explain the work of the district and schools to enhance safety and civility.

 

Each year the board shall devote one of its meetings to the needs, goals and progress being made with regard to safety and civility in the schools. The meeting is intended to summarize progress in the previous year and develop plans for the coming year. It is also intended to be a forum for discussion in order to continue the engagement of all who care about safety and civility in the schools.

 

 

Cross Reference:               Board Policy                   3124 Release of Student During School Hours

                                                                        3240 Student Conduct

                                                                        3241 Classroom Management, Corrective Actions or Punishment

                                                                        6510 Safety

                                                                        6511 Staff Safety

Management Resources:

                                     Policy News, Aug. 1998    WSSDA issues safety and civility paper

 

 

 

 

Adoption Date: June 2005

Camas School District