Federal Commission on School Safety’s First Field Visit Focuses on School Climate
HANOVER, Md. – The Federal Commission on School
Safety (FCSS) today held its first field visit at Frank Hebron-Harman Elementary
School in Hanover, Maryland, to focus on school climate and prevention efforts
implemented by local schools. The Commission heard from administrators,
principals, teachers, students and a national expert about Positive Behavioral
Interventions and Supports (PBIS), a framework designed to improve social,
emotional and academic outcomes for all students.
The Commission was represented by FCSS Chair U.S. Secretary of
Education Betsy DeVos; Beth Williams, Assistant Attorney General for Legal
Policy at the Department of Justice; Dr. Elinore McCance-Katz, Assistant
Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Abuse at the Department of Health and
Human Services; and Christopher Krebs, performing the duties of Under Secretary
for the National Protection and Programs Directorate at the Department of
Homeland Security.
The field visit began with a tour of several first
grade classrooms. The Commission participated in Angela Snyder’s morning
community circle activity where everyone welcomed their neighbor with a
greeting and fist-bump, followed by several discussion questions to promote
kindness. The group then visited Alexandra Lyons’ class to take part in a
reading activity and finished the tour with a visit to Kimberly Chicca’s class
where they worked with students on writing prompts for a book they were reading.
 Following the tour, the Commission first heard from national PBIS expert Dr. George Sugai of the University of Connecticut, who gave an overview of how PBIS links school climate, social emotional development and character development and emphasizes a systems-based approach to organizing practices. Next, Kathy Lane, Dr. Virginia Dolan and Kathy Rockefeller presented on Anne Arundel County Public Schools’ implementation of PBIS within Hebron-Harman and throughout the school district.
 After a lunch provided by the school cafeteria, there were three panels led by principals and administrators, teachers and a student. Participants of each panel are listed below.
Principal and administrator panel:
- Rebecca Blasingame-White, Frank Hebron-Harman Elementary School
- Paul DeRoo, Bates Middle School
- Jason Williams, Northeast High School
- Stacey Smith, Old Mill High School
Teacher panel:
- Alicia Schnitzler, Frank Hebron-Harman Elementary School
- Casey Hunt, Bates Middle School
- Chessil Johnson, Northeast High School
- Angela Bernholz, Old Mill High School
Student presentation:
- Briah Barksdale, Glen Burnie High School
 The field visit concluded with a question and answer session between the Commission and panelists. Secretary DeVos asked panelists how educators could ensure their PBIS practices remain fresh and flexible based upon students’ varying needs, and how administrators could best ensure effective implementation of the program in schools over time.
Secretary
DeVos offered the following comments:
“Today’s
field visit was a very useful look at how schools can take deliberate steps to
help make students feel included and valued. Tools like PBIS can help improve
school climate and, in turn, safety. We also benefited greatly from the
presentations of the experts, educators and students. As the Commission’s work
proceeds, we will continue to visit places where concrete steps have been taken
to help keep our students safe."
Video of the event can be found here.
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