Targeted Training for School Personnel and Students to Prevent School Violence

The Lincoln Center for Family and Youth will provide training to prevent school violence and bullying in Coatesville Area School District (CASD), Pennsylvania.   The project will serve all 10 CASD schools: 5,483 students in grades K-12. Of the total student population, 59% are minorities, with Black at 31% and Hispanic at 22% being the largest represented minorities. CASD is an in-need district. CASD receives a Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) for all schools. CEP is a USDA program that provides resources for districts in poverty-stricken areas to offer free meals to all students. Pennsylvania Department of Education (2019) reports the CASD graduation rate is 84%, a 3% gap from the state.  Of all CASD disciplinary incidents, 53% were violent and 6% involved a weapon.  The project addresses two gaps: (1) Pervasive school and community violence and (2) School personnel and students need training on preventing student violence and bullying. The project goal is to prevent school violence. The project objective is to provide training to prevent student violence against others and self, including training for school personnel and students.   To accomplish the objective, the project has five primary activities centered on preventing school violence: (1) Train school personnel, (2) Provide specialized training to select school staff (3) Train students and their caregivers, (4) Evaluate the effectiveness of school personnel trainings, and (5) Evaluate the effectiveness of student and caregiver trainings.    The project will provide deliverables for each of the five primary activities. First, school personnel trained in Social Emotional Learning (SEL), restorative practices, trauma-informed practices, SaferSaner Schools, Pennsylvania’s anonymous reporting technologies, school- and community-based mental health services, and Teach Antibullying. Second, School Safety Advocates (SSAs) with advanced training in International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP), Pennsylvania anonymous reporting technologies, and school-based and community-based mental health services. Third, students and parents/caregivers trained in strategies to reduce school violence like SEL, Pennsylvania anonymous reporting technologies, and available school- and community-based mental health services. Fourth, project effectiveness at increasing school personnel content knowledge on responding to threats of violence and preventing violence on campus. Fifth, project effectiveness at preventing school violence and juvenile violence in schools and in the community.