This guide describes the use of a multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) framework, like positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), to restart classrooms and schools in a manner that all students, families, and educators are supported effectively, efficiently, and relevantly. This guide is not a primer on MTSS or PBIS. (For a basic…

Over 400 schools throughout the world have adopted Invitational Education to foster innovative thinking, sustained positive action, and the creation of socially and emotionally safe schools. As educators are now involved in an epic rethinking of what they do and how they do it, "Developing Inviting Schools" provides a dependable guide…

School safety and student well-being are crucial to the social, emotional, and academic development of young people. Many districts have turned to school security measures that offer visible signs or outward appearances of safety; however, other approaches--those that create positive and inclusive school climates--both support students' well-being…

This qualitative case study explored educators' perceptions of implementing trauma-informed practices in a Title I school in Mississippi. With a rising number of trauma-affected students in the United States, there is a parallel increase in educators facing empathy-related stress, leading to elevated burnout rates and attrition from the…

The goal of this toolkit is to give educators and school leaders the tools that they need to prevent bullying and harassment by fostering a positive school climate. This package is meant to be used as a guide for teachers and administrators in their work to develop a safe and healthy school climate and, in the process, prevent bullying and…

This "Equity Tool" illustrates research on the effects homophobia and transphobia have on the mental health of LGBTQ+ students, as well as strategies and resources teachers and administrators can use to address this issue. This tool includes three infographics to help the audience understand this information, and share it with others, in…

Herein, the Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance (TA) Center provides a list of resources for school administrators to use to assist in school safety efforts. The list includes the following categories of resources: (1) Before an Emergency; (2) During an Emergency; (3) After an Emergency; and (4) Emergency…

In a world where one in five women on campus experience some form of sexual assault, what would it take to create a campus culture that was free of violence against women? From a public health perspective, sexual assault is an epidemic on campuses, but why? What is it about a campus community culture that permits or encourages this, at a time when…

The past few years have been a fertile time for new school creation. Whether it was the disruption of the pandemic forcing families to improvise as their traditional schools struggled to cope with the challenge of the coronavirus, or the sweeping new private school choice policies passed in state after state, it has never been a better time to be…

Because bullying behaviors occur across the many spaces that exist within schools (e.g., classrooms, gyms, bathrooms, playgrounds, cafeterias), and because students often move between classrooms and teachers, it is critical for schools to take a schoolwide approach to preventing bullying and harassment (Jones & Bouffard, 2012; Bradshaw, 2015).…

The number of school resource officers (SROs) is increasing nationwide. Simultaneously, the number of schools adopting schoolwide positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) is increasing and projected to expand in response to the greater focus of the newly passed Every Student Succeeds Act to improve school climate and safety. Without…

Since the pandemic began, parents have been less satisfied with existing school systems, and they want to see greater transparency and education customization that meets students where they are. Nearing the final deadline to obligate remaining Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding, state and local policymakers can take…

When schools closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many wondered, "When are we getting back to normal?" A few weeks later, the question changed to, "Will we get back to normal?" And now, many are realizing the old normal won't be back, at least not anytime soon. Still, educators will eventually return to their campuses,…

Principals' influence on students is largely indirect, but their work in shaping school cultures, equipping teachers, and welcoming families all support students' academic achievement. A few pivots on the part of principals may transform the ways that parents and families participate in and engage with their students' schooling. This brief is…

Concerns for student safety are a commonly cited reason for the presence of police in schools. But as the nation grapples with the appropriate roles and responsibilities of police more broadly, the time is right to shine a light on what we know about the effects of police in schools. This brief summarizes the research related to this question.…