Student Voice: Host a 'World Cafe' on School Climate Issues

S3 grantee Madison High School in San Diego USD hosted a World Café as a way of deepening their understanding of student perspectives regarding school climate issues.  Eight students were trained to be table facilitators during the event, which involved lunch and a dialogue between thirty-seven students and school staff focused around three themes:

• promoting school connectedness,
• high expectations/caring relationships, and
• violence prevention. 

Both student and staff participants agreed that it was a powerful and useful experience that helped them feel more connected to the school and helped Madison High School develop priorities to focus on in their S3 school climate efforts.  For more information, contact S3 Coordinator Greg Williams at gwilliams3@sandi.net.

Want to share your school's success story? Send it to sccnews@wested.org

California Blueprint for Supporting Military Children

Over 100 civilian and military-connected VIPs from community organizations, CEOs, superintendents, school board presidents, college deans, religious leaders and senior military officers from across California gathered at USC to create the first statewide plan to support military children.

Read the entire California Public Engagement SPECIAL ISSUE newsletter or visit USC's Building Capacity in Military-Connected Schools (BCMCS) website for more information.

School Accountability

Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation that aims to remake the state’s accountability system for public schools by reducing the role of standardized testing and incorporating a broader gauge of student accomplishment and school effectiveness, including preparation for college and career.
Read Kimberly Beltran's SI&A Cabinet report -- 9/27/12

Student Health

School-based Health Clinics
A recent column in "The Wall Street Journal" highlighted the important role school-based health centers (SBHCs) play in providing access to health care for kids and teens, particularly students with specialized health needs, reducing health-related barriers to learning. Read this Wall Street Journal article.

Results from the 2011 National Survey on Drug Use and Health
The survey finds that perceptions of risk play a role in how young people use substances. Youth Today summarizes some of the key findings as they apply to children and teens, including that marijuana use among children between the ages of 12 and 17 has stayed stable for the last several years, while cigarette smoking has declined. Read SAMHSA's 2011 survey of drug usage results.

EdWeek's New School Climate Blog

Rules for Engagement will explore school climate and a host of nonacademic factors that can make or break students' experience in and feelings about school. It will cover such topics as student behavior and motivation, discipline and classroom management, student health and well-being, and social-emotional learning, and how they influence the academic side of the ledger, so that curriculum and school culture are inextricably linked.

Read the first Rules for Engagement post -- 10/02/12