Atlanta Schools Rewarded for Playing it Safe
School shootings and other acts of violence often lead the nightly news and result in public outrage. But while most attention is given to schools that are perceived as being dangerous, the efforts of school systems that are actively working to prevent violence within their halls may be overlooked.
A new award created by a Georgia State-based research center and an Atlanta-area educators' group attempts to reverse that trend by publicly recognizing the strides being made to end school-based violence. The Center for Research on School Safety, School Climate and Classroom Management, housed in Georgia State's College of Education — along with the Atlanta Metropolitan Regional Educational Service Agency — is establishing a "Persistently Safe Schools Award" to recognize Georgia schools that take action to reduce violence in their classrooms.
The award offers an alternative to the "persistently dangerous" label some schools face following the federal passage of the "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2000. The law mandates that states create a definition for a "persistently dangerous school" — students in these schools are then allowed to transfer to a "safe" school.
"Rather than focus on what is wrong, it is more constructive to identify what some schools do well so that others can learn to adopt effective strategies," says Joel Meyers, a counseling professor at Georgia State and the center's director.
Details of the award will be announced soon. Read more online about the Center for School Safety.