Whole School Safety

THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER RECOMMENDS

That the Chicago Board of Education (the Board) rescind Board Report 04-0922-PO3, Policy on Student Social and Emotional Health, and adopt the new Whole School Safety Policy, as the key components of the Social Emotional Learning Policy have been embedded within the Whole School Safety Policy.

PURPOSE

Safety is everyone's responsibility and the Board is committed to supporting the holistic safety of all of our schools through policies and programs that holistically address the physical, behavioral, and social-emotional safety, health, and well-being of every student. This policy builds on the District's existing Healing-Centered Framework and wellness and social-emotional learning policies and initiatives, and was developed to meet the needs of CPS communities. In addition, the use of School Resource Officers within District, Charter, Contract, and Options schools concluded at the end of the 2023-2024 school year, understanding that the District will continue its strong partnership with the Mayor's Office and the Chicago Police Department, which have always, and will continue to, provide critical support for all of our schools. This policy will guide school administrators, across the District to adopt the Whole School Safety Framework consistent with this policy.

This policy will guide all schools to adopt the comprehensive Whole School Safety Framework that addresses the following three components:

1. Physical Safety - Administrators understand how best to respond to threats of violence, neighborhood incidents, and emergencies to keep students and staff safe.
2. Emotional Safety - Administrators, staff, and students feel safe to express emotions, are comfortable in their environment, feel secure about taking risks, and are challenged to try new things.
3. Relational Trust - Interpersonal relationships among administrators, students, teachers, and staff are built on mutual trust.

EQUITY STATEMENT

This Policy, created in alignment with the CPS Equity Framework, through Targeted Universalism and Inclusive Partnerships, lays out required guidelines for all staff supporting the safety of all students in all schools regardless of age, grade level, or school governance. This Policy covers events that take place in the school, on school property, at school-sponsored functions and activities, on school buses or vehicles and at bus stops, and at school-sponsored out-of-school events where school staff are present. The entire school community, including educators, school and district staff, students, and volunteers are responsible for implementing this Policy.

I. Policy Text

• Definition of Terms:
  • Behavioral Health Team (BHT): A school-based team, established by the Principal, that is responsible for coordinating the delivery of Tier II and Tier III SEL and behavioral health interventions to students in need of support. BHTs are composed of Administrator(s), School Counselor(s), and Social Worker(s), and may include a Nurse, School Psychologist, SEL Coordinator, School Disciplinarian, Case Manager, and other relevant stakeholders, and community-based organizations or clinicians, when available.
  • Behavioral Health and Wellness: The social-emotional and psychological well-being of students, staff, families, and community partners.
  • Cross-Departmental Whole School Safety Committee: This committee is made up of designees from various CPS Central Office Departments and/or other Central Office committees that will meet at least quarterly to collaborate and align the resources available for schools to continue enhancing the student, staff and parent experience with ensuring high quality physical safety, emotional safety, and relational trust structures are actively in place in all schools.
  • Culturally-Responsive: Centering equity in healing by promoting a liberatory consciousness, recognizing a broad understanding of trauma (including historic and generational trauma), and affirming all cultures in the healing process.
  • Culture & Climate Team (CCT): A school-based team, established by the Principal, that is responsible for overseeing the establishment and implementation of universal supports/Tier I strategies centered around collective well-being for students and staff, school-wide climate, and relational trust development as part of student social and emotional development.
    1. CCTs are composed of Administrator(s), School Culture & Climate Coordinator, Restorative Justice Coordinator, Youth Intervention Specialist, Teacher(s), School Disciplinarian(s), and should include engagement with other key stakeholders including students, parents, and community organizations.
  • Healing-Centered: Approaches that are holistic ways of viewing trauma and healing that emphasize a person's strengths and collective experiences.
  • Healing-Centered Framework: The framework for transforming CPS into a trauma-engaged, culturally responsive district to foster individual and collective wellbeing.
  • Healing-Centered Culture, Supports and Social-Emotional Interventions: An indicator category within the District Policy for Continuous Improvement and Data Transparency that measures the level of school capacity and quality of practices in support of student physical, social, and emotional health to the extent to which schools are implementing an equity based MTSS framework, which includes providing research valid Social Emotional Learning (SEL) interventions in response to students' demonstrated needs.
  • Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS): The system used to ensure that schools are equipped with universal supports, targeted interventions, and individualized resources that address each student's unique needs to create a culture of behavioral health and wellness. For the purposes of this Policy, the tiers are defined as follows:
    1. Tier I: Universal proactive support that impacts all students.
    2. Tier II: Supports that target individually struggling students. Behavioral health supports and monitoring interventions are most often conducted in small groups.
    3. Tier III: Intense, individual support to support students most impacted by trauma. Students exhibiting dangerous, classroom-disrupting behaviors should receive this level of intense support.
  • Principal Advisory Safety Sub-Committee: The Principal Sub-Committee, which is part of the districtwide Principal Advisory Committee, is designed to advise the CEO on Safety Matters as it pertains to the District as whole, based on feedback from Principals in their Networks.
  • Restorative Practices: Restorative Practices are ways of proactively developing the culture and relationships of people within a community, as well as intentional practices to address needs and heal the community when harm occurs. When successfully integrated throughout the school culture and climate, restorative practices ensure the well-being and sense of belonging of community members through authentic communication, validation of identities, emotional connections, and meaningful relationships. Restorative practices seek to identify and equitably address the wellness needs of all members of the community.
  • Restorative Discipline: A restorative disciplinary paradigm believes that accountability is achieved when students are engaged with supportive adults and peers to learn new social and emotional skills, allowing them to understand the impact of harmful behavior, develop empathy with one another, and how to make amends in a way that addresses the impact of harm on individuals and the community. Restorative discipline seeks to understand and address the root causes of student behavior through supportive relationships, collaboration with parents and caregivers, and trauma-responsive interventions and supports.
  • Social and Emotional Learning (SEL): The process through which children and adults acquire the knowledge, attitudes, and skills they need to recognize and manage their emotions, demonstrate care and concern for others, establish positive relationships, make responsible decisions, and handle challenging situations constructively.
  • Student Voice Committee: Youth perspectives are a necessary component for true inclusive partnerships and equitable decision-making. In order for classrooms and schools to promote student agency and authority, youth voices should be valued and elevated, and students should have opportunities to share power with adults. We do this through a 360 degree approach to student voice, practices, and structures for classrooms, schools, and district-wide impact.
  • Trauma-Engaged: Not only understanding and being aware of trauma, but proactively promoting collective healing as a whole school system while responsively meeting the individual wellness needs of each student.
  • Trauma-Responsive: An approach that recognizes and responds to the impact of traumatic stress on children, families, and caregivers by increasing trauma awareness, knowledge, and skills and incorporating these into program policies and practices.
  • Whole Child Approach: The holistic approach that prioritizes physical, behavioral, and social-emotional health to ensure that every student in every school is healthy, safe, supported, challenged, and engaged.
  • Whole School Safety Committee (WSSC): A school-based team that is by default a committee within the Culture and Climate Team and/or another combination of members from other school based teams, as established by the Principal. The Whole School Safety Committee will provide input on the establishment and implementation of trauma-responsive universal supports/Tier I strategies centered around collective well-being including student connectedness and well-being to create a supportive environment.
    1. WSSCs are composed of administrator(s), school staff, security officers, current students, parents and should include engagement with other key stakeholders including community organizations.
  • Whole School Safety Steering Committee: Council consisting of community stakeholders and CPS Leadership to monitor the use, development, and implementation of Whole School Safety Plans.
  • Whole School Safety Framework: Model for supporting school safety that incorporates three components using a restorative and supportive student-centered approach:
    1. Physical Safety - Administrators understand how best to respond to threats of violence, neighborhood incidents, and emergencies to keep students and staff safe.
    2. Emotional Safety - Administrators, staff, and students feel safe to express emotions, are comfortable in their environment, feel secure about taking risks, and are challenged to try new things.
    3. Relational Trust - Interpersonal relationships among administrators, students, teachers, and staff are built on mutual trust.

II. Whole School Safety Collaboration and Partnerships

• Collaboration and Partnership: Practices that welcome the inclusive voices of students and parents in school decision-making create a more equitable learning experience. Whether deciding on policies regarding school culture, creating programs that support students and families, or formulating teacher hiring practices, students, staff, and parents/guardians should have a say in school-wide decisions. Therefore, to support the implementation of this Policy and ensure ongoing collaboration, the cornerstone of this work centers around ensuring that there is community engagement and inclusion of the voices of those who are most affected by this policy, students. The District will also continue its strong partnership with the Mayor's Office and the Chicago Police Department, which have always, and will continue to, provide critical support for all of our schools.
• Whole School Safety Steering Committee: Council consisting of community stakeholders and CPS Leadership to monitor the use, development, and implementation of Whole School Safety Plans.
• The implementation of this Policy also requires the partnership of several CPS departments. The Office of Safety and Security will partner with representatives from the following departments, and other relevant departments:
  • Office of Social and Emotional Learning (OSEL)
  • Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD)
  • Office of Student Protections and Title IX (OSP)
  • Office of Network Support (ONS)
  • Office of Family and Community Engagement (FACE)
  • Office of Equity
  • Office of Local School Council Relations (OLSCR)
  • Office of Student Voice and Civic Engagement (OSVCE)
  • Office of Sustainable Community Schools (OSCS)
  • Office of Student Health and Wellness (OSHW)
• It will be especially critical to partner with school leaders through the CPS Principal Advisory Safety Sub-Committee in the ongoing review and implementation of this policy.

III. Whole School Safety Framework

The following section outlines the core elements that the Whole School Safety Framework encompasses.

• Whole School Safety Planning: The Whole School Safety Plan encompasses each school's vision, priorities, and strategies to create an environment of physical safety, emotional safety, and relational trust. As part of the planning process schools should assess the root causes and contributing factors of the disproportionalities for different student groups. This should be done through a review of quantitative and qualitative data, including feedback from the school community.

  All Schools would benefit from the implementation of the Whole School Safety Framework and will have a Safety Vision, which prioritizes safety as a key component of student, staff, parent, and community well-being, learning, and healing.

  • Whole School Safety Committee (WSSC): In addition to membership or in partnership with the Culture and Climate Team, the Principal or designee of a respective school should recruit diverse representation among their stakeholder groups who are most impacted, and in partnership with their Local School Council, Student Voice Committees, Instructional Leadership Teams, and Behavioral Health Teams.
    1. Administrators and/or designees should ensure inclusive partnerships that value and prioritize the diverse voices of students, families, caregivers, and communities who will be most affected are a part of the Whole School Safety Committee (WSSC). The committee should be made up of no less than the following roles to represent all components of planning and school-wide assessment of practices, but can include more than the minimum listed:
       • Administrator(s)
       • Teacher(s)
       • Security Officer(s)
       • Staff
       • Parent(s) - Minimum 2 parents of current students
         1. There should be a priority for parents who have students who are most impacted by the disciplinary system and those representing marginalized groups to serve on this committee. Therefore, parent members should not be limited to those who are already serving in committee leadership capacities or are already serving on multiple school committees.
       • Student(s) - Minimum 3 students of the school
         1. There should be a priority for students who are most impacted by the disciplinary system and students representing marginalized groups to serve on this committee. Therefore, student members should not be limited to those who are already serving in student voice leadership positions.
         2. Student participation shall not be prohibited based on discipline, attendance or grades.
  • Required Whole School Safety Framework Components: All teachers and staff are expected to model, teach, and reinforce the social and emotional skills needed to build and maintain positive relationships, to resolve conflict, and to strengthen prosocial behavior and connectedness. Schools achieve this by implementing key strategies that build upon and enhance the physical safety, emotional safety and relational trust in their Whole School Safety Plans in alignment with the CPS Healing-Centered Framework. The following are critical components and for each area are expanded upon further in the Policy.
    1. Protective Factors:
       1. Fostering relationships between students and trusted adults.
       2. Classroom and school-wide connectedness.
       3. Social and emotional learning requirements.
          • Teaching Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) through explicit instruction and integrated practices.
          • Providing tiered SEL and behavioral interventions within classrooms and school-wide environments.
          • Partnering with community partners to support individualized student SEL and behavioral health skill development.
    2. Investments in student leadership and decision-making processes.
       1. All High Schools must hold monthly co-led whole school safety conversations with the school Principal and other administration that includes multiple representatives from the following groups: Student Voice Committee, students on the Whole School Safety Committee, and LSC student representatives. LSC student representatives will report on these conversations to respective local school councils. Students and Principals will be provided with resources and guidance to prepare for these conversations and reporting techniques.
    3. Authentic parent and community engagement opportunities.
    4. Holistic restorative practices, including restorative discipline practices that include interventions and consequences that progress along a continuum of intensity.
    5. A safe and welcoming physical school environment.
       1. Schools must establish a Culture & Climate Team (CCT) which can be inclusive of the Whole School Safety Committee (WSSC) or in addition to the WSSC to oversee the establishment and implementation of Tier I climate and SEL strategies according to the Whole School Safety Framework to develop a supportive school environment aligned to the Healing-Centered Framework.

  • Whole School Safety Framework Implementation:

    1. The policy is in effect starting SY24-25 and will be implemented in phases using a tiered criteria based on each school's use of exclusionary disciplinary practices, high number of misconducts, including out-of-school suspensions, with a focus on the use of disproportionate application of these actions, police notifications, as well as the results of continuous improvement and data transparency indicators in the area of Healing-Centered Culture, Supports and Social-Emotional Interventions. WSSCs can request additional data metrics to better assess and monitor their school's progress.
    2. First year (FY25): all schools will be provided with data metrics by the Office of Safety and Security, in collaboration with other departments, to conduct a baseline assessment of their safety, culture and climate. Schools with existing WSS plans will continue to refine their plans with existing committees.
       1. Second year - fourth year (FY 26-28): all schools will establish WSS committees based on the tiered criteria from their Year 1 assessments.
       2. Fifth year (FY29): all schools will have established WSS committees and have developed and implemented a WSS plan.
       3. High schools should begin establishing Student Voice Committees. By the end of the fifth year of Whole School Safety Implementation, FY29 (June 2029), all high schools must have a student voice committee.
       4. Upon the request of staff/students/parents who want to initiate the process in their schools, the District will support schools in establishing WSS committees.
    3. Each year, the WSSC must deliver a WSS presentation to the school community (e.g. at a public Local School Council meeting) prior to the start of the annual school budgeting process.
       1. As part of this structure, schools will have established a process for measuring, monitoring, and analyzing data aligned with positive culture and school climate on an ongoing basis.
    4. By year five of the implementation of this policy (FY29), school security officer allocations will be budgeted through the WSS planning process.
  • School Community Engagement: A safe school environment welcomes the voices of all community members connected to the school. Schools should engage student voice committees, professional personnel leadership committees (PPLC) and parent stakeholders to develop and implement annual Whole School Safety Plans in partnership with their school.
  • Schools seeking incremental resources, such as screening equipment, and incremental program resources must go through the Whole School Safety Planning Process and complete a Whole School Safety Plan for resource consideration.
• The Whole School Safety Framework will be adopted by the entire District as the use of School Resource Officers within District, Charter, Contract, and Options schools will conclude at the end of the 2023-2024 school year.

IV. Critical Whole School Safety Components

The following components apply to all campuses.

• Required Physical Safety Components:

  • School Security Officers.

    1. Every school must have at least one security officer. The need for additional officers is based on an allocation formula that takes into consideration a variety of factors such as size of a school building, number of students enrolled, neighborhood crime, etc.
    2. At a minimum, all security officers should have a current certification in de-escalation and physical management strategies, in the curriculum supported by the District.
    3. School security officers must be dressed in the District approved uniform in order to be clearly identified as security personnel.

  • Cameras.

    1. Schools should be equipped with working cameras to ensure safety inside and outside of the building.

  • Emergency Management.

    1. All schools are required to have a comprehensive Emergency Management Plan in place that is updated at a minimum on an annual basis.
       1. Staff and students must be made aware of the emergency procedures that are to be followed in the event of an Evacuation, Lockdown, or Shelter-in-Place emergency and participate in annual practice drills.
    2. All classrooms should be equipped with a "Go Kit" that contains current pertinent student medical and emergency information as well as items to assist staff with responding accordingly to an emergency.
       1. All Main Offices must be equipped with a "Main Office Go Kit" that includes current student and staff medical and emergency information as well as items to assist staff with responding accordingly to an emergency.
    3. All schools must have the District approved Emergency Codes (ELSA) posted throughout the school building and in every classroom.
    4. All schools must complete the annually required safety drills in a trauma informed manner, by their due dates in order to be in compliance with state and district requirements.

  • All Exterior and Interior Doors are to Remain Locked at all Times.

    1. All interior doors, other than restrooms, should be locked at all times whether the room is occupied or not.
    2. Exterior doors that have not been identified as a student or staff entrance are not to be opened by students or staff to permit entry into the building for any reason.
       1. Individuals should be directed to the main entrance where they can be verbally and visually assessed prior to being allowed admittance into the building.
    3. All staff should be issued and have access to the key(s) that locks and unlocks their classroom(s), including substitute teachers.

  • Screening Equipment.

    1. Schools may consider screening equipment at entry to prevent weapons and other prohibited and/or dangerous items into the school.
       1. Schools seeking incremental resources, such as screening equipment, must go through the Whole School Safety Planning Process and complete a Whole School Safety Plan for resource consideration.

  • Visitor Entry.

    1. Each school's security station should be located within a clear line of sight of the main entrance in order to observe and then direct visitors to the proper location in the building.
       1. The security station should be staffed at all times during school hours by either a security officer or another trained staff member designated by a School Administrator.
    2. All visitors must be checked in for their visit and logged into the District's approved Visitor Management System.

  • Student and Staff ID.

    1. Staff should have their CPS ID on and visible at all times they are in the building, so they can be recognized by visitors and students in the event assistance is needed.
    2. Schools should implement a grade-appropriate student ID protocol.

• Required Emotional Safety Components

  Schools and Staff as Healers:

  • Education and Awareness. All schools must incorporate climate and social and emotional learning training into their annual school-wide professional development plans.
    1. All staff understand the prevalence and impact of trauma, including secondary or vicarious trauma, and can recognize a trauma response in students and other adults.
    2. All staff build the capacity to recognize their own current and past traumas in order to address them.
    3. All staff build the capacity to recognize their own actions and reactions to student behavior that escalate rather than support a situation, in order to address them.
  • Skills and Strategies. All schools must teach social and emotional learning in alignment with Illinois Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Standards through integrated practices and explicit instruction.
    1. All staff have resources/strategies to support students experiencing trauma and/or behavioral outbursts and encourage student wellness, as well as use those strategies to self-regulate and help students and colleagues manage vicarious or secondary trauma.
    2. All staff understand how their role can contribute to creating a trauma-shielding, trauma-reducing, or trauma-inducing environment in the classroom and school as a whole.
    3. All staff understand how the environment and they can trigger and escalate student behavior in the classroom and school as a whole.
  • Culture and Climate. All schools must have a school Culture and Climate Team.
    1. This includes, but is not limited to the following:
       1. A culture that validates the importance of mental wellness, and de-stigmatizes trauma.
       2. The environment and physical spaces are strategically structured to be trauma-reducing and calming.
       3. The environment includes the availability of welcoming spaces to be used for healing, for staff and students.
    2. All staff seek to understand "what's right with students" rather than "what's wrong with students."
    3. All staff prioritize the needs of students first, teaming to provide care as needed, rather than raising role-limiting or title-specific barriers.
       1. Such as, establishing a culture of shared responsibility throughout the school.
    4. All schools effectively implement Restorative Practices with buy-in from all staff.
       1. All staff take responsibility for the way they promote or impede restorative practices.
  • Established Structures.
    1. Effectively delivering a "menu" of Tier 2 and Tier 3 trauma interventions that are appropriate for the school's student population.
    2. Effectively implementing MTSS, including effective Behavioral Health Teams (BHTs)
       1. Taking into consideration trauma history prior to diagnosis and training in understanding students' mental and behavioral health.
    3. Schools are staffed with enough culturally-responsive mental health practitioners to support the needs of the student population and/or have knowledge of agencies and community partners to connect students' families, caregivers, and key members of their community to appropriate mental wellness resources, as needed.
    4. Schools have established the time, space, and ability to implement proactive Tier 1 practices, in addition to responsive Tier 2 and Tier 3 practices.
  • Crisis Support.
    1. Any student displaying signs of trauma and or behavioral needs is able to receive individualized services and/or crisis support that is culturally-relevant, relatable, and holds the young person at the center.
    2. All schools have strong crisis teams and BHTs that effectively respond to suicide risk, students in distress, student referrals to Tier 3 support, and provide ongoing healing after a traumatic event, beyond the immediate stabilization response.

  Students as Agents of their Own Healing and Wellness:

  • Education and Awareness.
    1. All students have access to intersectional, sensitive, and culturally appropriate mental health instruction as part of their health curriculum.
    2. All students have access to suicide awareness and prevention training.
  • Skills and Strategies.
    1. All students have access to quality, culturally-responsive social-emotional skill building as part of their school day.
    2. All students understand their right to identify content that may be triggering for them and seek an alternative and/or support processing, as appropriate.
    3. All students have a path to self-refer for mental wellness resources any time throughout the year and know how to do so.
  • Culture and Climate. All schools must create a school Culture and Climate Team/Whole School Safety Committee to create supportive school environments.
    1. All students feel that they have a voice to advocate for a school where they belong and feel respected, as stated in the Student Bill of Rights in the Student Code of Conduct.
  • Established Structures.
    1. All students who may receive support for mental wellness or trauma understand the supports available and are equitable partners in selecting the best option(s), when developmentally appropriate.
    2. All students have access to structures to support each other's mental wellness and healing, such as peer and adult mentors, student support groups, etc.
    3. All students are able to provide input on what Tier 2 and Tier 3 trauma interventions will work well for them, when developmentally appropriate.

  Families, Caregivers, and Communities:

  • Education and Awareness.
    1. All families, caregivers, and community stakeholders are aware of what trauma is (and is not) and have information that helps destigmatize trauma and mental wellness.
  • Skills and Strategies.
    1. All involved family members of students receiving support for mental wellness or trauma are informed of the supports, know how to reinforce them at home/outside of the school setting, and are equitable partners in selecting the best options, as appropriate.
  • Culture and Climate. All schools must create a school Culture and Climate Team/Whole School Safety Committee to create supportive school environments.
    1. All families and caregivers view their child's school as a welcoming and supportive environment.
    2. All families and caregivers are valued as key parts of the healing process, as stated in the Parent Bill of Rights in the Student Code of Conduct.
  • Established Structures.
    1. Community organizations have clear guidance on how to effectively partner with schools and students and how to do so in a trauma-engaged and culturally-responsive way.
    2. All families and caregivers have a clear understanding of the interventions for their child and feel empowered to communicate with the school to ask questions about those interventions.
  • Crisis Support.
    1. In the event of a crisis, all students' families, caregivers, and community stakeholders feel supported, informed, and connected to relevant resources.

  Programming:

  • Classroom and School-Wide Programming. Implement evidence-based, age and culturally appropriate classroom instruction and school-wide strategies that teach social and emotional skills, promote optimal behavioral health, and prevent risk behaviors for all students through explicit instruction and integrated practices aligned to Illinois Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Standards.
  • Staff Development and Training. Provide staff development to all school personnel, including administrative, academic, pupil support staff, ancillary staff in age-appropriate social, emotional, and academic learning and ways to promote it in the classroom. Training provided in areas specific to particular staff roles and areas of need, as expressed by staff, students, and parents should also be provided on an ongoing basis.
  • Parent and Family Involvement. Provide parents and families with learning opportunities related to the importance of their children's optimal social and emotional development, and ways to enhance it, as well as training opportunities, information sessions on community resources, mental health supports, basic necessity supports, etc.
  • Community Partnerships. Establish partnerships with diverse community agencies and organizations to assure a coordinated approach to addressing children's mental health and social and emotional development.
  • Early Identification and Intervention. Utilize existing protocols to screen, assess and provide early intervention for students who have significant risk factors for social, emotional, behavioral, or mental health problems that impact learning and social skills. Utilize a self-reporting process for students to request services, supports, and interventions, as needed.
  • Assessment and Intervention. Increase assessment and monitoring of school-wide practices multiple times each school year using various school-wide assessment tools (i.e. Trauma Responsive Schools Implementation Assessment, CASEL's Schoolwide SEL Rubric, School Mental Health Quality Assessment, etc.) used to inform continuous school improvement efforts. Build and strengthen referral and follow-up mechanisms for providing effective clinical and behavioral services for children with social, emotional, behavioral, and mental health issues that impact learning and social skills through student and family support services, school-based intervention, and school and community linked services and supports.
  • Conflict Resolution and Anti-Bullying. Developing supportive school climate strategies, including clear expectations and share agreements to guide interactions between students, and between staff and students. Teaching all students social and emotional skills and establishing classroom and school-wide practices that promote relationship-building, including teaching all school stakeholders to speak out when they see or hear bullying, degrading language, and bias or prejudice. Establishing predictable responses and effective disciplinary practices that address root cause, teach skills, build empathy, and repair harm. Ensure all students, staff, and stakeholders know how your school plans to respond to bullying and harassment.
• Required Relational Trust Components

  Building Relationships:

  • Education and Awareness.
    1. All staff and administrators understand diverse cultures and experiences of their students.
    2. All staff and administrators have awareness of their biases and how those may impact relationships.
  • Classroom and School-wide Connectedness.
    1. Fostering and establishing mentoring relationships by pairing students with adults who they connect with and/or are able to build a relationship with in the school.
       1. Every student should have a safe adult at their school that they trust.
    2. Welcoming and Greeting protocol for students, staff, and visitors to feel welcome when entering and are in the building.
    3. Accessible Counselors and/or Emotional Support Staff who are available for students to connect with when they need.
    4. Peer Mentoring, where students can speak to their peers about situations or issues they may be having in or out of school to get advice on how to move through and/or address the situation.
    5. Peer Ambassadors, who support other students and raise awareness to school leaders regarding peer to peer conflicts prior to them escalating and assist with the de-escalation of situations, as appropriate.
  • Established Structures.
    1. All High Schools must hold monthly co-led whole school safety conversations with Principals and other administration that includes multiple representatives from the following groups: Student Voice Committee, Whole School Safety Committee students, and LSC student reps. LSC student reps will report on these conversations to respective local school councils. Students and Principals will be provided with resources and guidance to prepare for these conversations and reporting techniques.
  • Climate and Culture. All schools must create a school Culture and Climate Team with a Whole School Safety Committee to create supportive school environments.
    1. Create an environment that fosters confidentiality for students and staff to share their feelings and/or situations they need support with.
       1. Ensure students are aware of what information school staff are required to report to particular agencies, including why the information should be reported, what the reporting consists of, how it is done, what the process looks like and how they may or may not be impacted, as a result of the report being made.
    2. Shared Mission and Vision for the school that is created in collaboration with the staff and students.
       1. Provide transparency to students about rules and protocols that are in place, including the purpose of them being in place with the intent of having an open discussion about alternatives that may result in the same outcome/purpose.
    3. Transparent and timely communication with parents on incidents, district and school initiatives, upcoming events, opportunities to engage with the school, etc.

V. Accountability Requirements

• Schools must implement strategies in alignment with Healing-Centered Culture, Supports and Social-Emotional Interventions indicators as identified by the Office of Social & Emotional Learning in alignment with the District Policy for Continuous Improvement and Data Transparency (23-0426- PO4).
• Upon the request of students/parents who want to initiate the process in their schools, the District will support schools in establishing WSS committees. This work will be guided by the WSS Implementation Guide.
• In addition, each year, CPS ONS, OSSS and OSEL will identify a number of priority schools in each Network based on their use of exclusionary disciplinary practices, high number of misconducts, including out-of-school suspensions and police notifications.
  • At the school level, Whole School Safety Committees will be formed in order to work through the Whole School Safety Framework using the WSS Implementation Guide.
  • Selected schools will also receive ongoing support from OSEL and OSSS to identify priority areas, resources needed, and the implementation of the identified strategies/resources.

VI. Training

The Office of Safety and Security will partner with collaborating departments, including, but not limited to the Cross-Department Whole School Safety Committee, and the Whole School Safety Steering Committee to develop and share resources and professional development to increase staff, student, and parent/guardian knowledge of this Policy, the Healing-Centered Framework, and the Whole School Safety Framework implementation. Training will be provided to all school employees, not just students, teachers, and administrators. Below are some examples of suggested training that is available within the District.

• Staff and Administration Training Examples:
  • Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Standards
  • SEL Curriculum
  • Tiered SEL Teaming Structures
    1. Culture & Climate Teams
    2. Behavioral Health Teams
  • Restorative Justice
    1. Talking/Peace Circles
    2. Restorative Conversations
    3. Restorative Discipline
  • Classroom Management
  • Behavioral Health Strategies and Interventions
  • De-escalation
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Addressing Challenging Behavior
  • Building Relationships with Adults and Students
  • Suicide Awareness and Prevention
  • Substance Use: Signs, Symptoms, and Supports
  • Cultural Competence and Implicit Bias

  Additional training options will be available in the Whole School Safety Implementation Guide.

• Staff Support Examples:
  • Coaching and mentoring for teachers to increase student success, teacher job satisfaction, improved classroom management skills, and decrease the need for administrative disciplinary support.
  • Embedded Network staff to build the capacity of school principal or designee in the establishment and continued growth of Culture & Climate Teams, Behavioral Health Teams, and the implementation of continuous improvement strategies based on assessments of school-wide practices.

VII. Compliance

• The Chief Officer of Safety and Security or designee is authorized to develop procedures and guidelines for the use and implementation of the Whole School Safety Framework.
• The Office of Safety and Security will maintain a Whole School Safety Steering Committee consisting of community stakeholders and CPS Leadership to monitor the use, development, and implementation of Whole School Safety Plans.
• The Office of Safety and Security will ensure the student and parent components of this Policy will be added to the Student and Parent Bill of Rights.
• The Office of Safety and Security, the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD), Office of Student Protections and Title IX (OSP), Office of Network Support (ONS), Office of Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Office of Equity, and the Executive Directors of Local School Council Relations (OLSCR), Civic Engagement, Department of Student Voice and Engagement, and the Office of Social & Emotional Learning (OSEL) will provide implementation guidance and support at the school level for the Whole School Safety Framework.
• Schools must execute the Whole School Safety Framework in accordance with the requirements of this Policy and the procedures and guidelines issued by the Chief Officer of Safety and Security or designee.
• Principals must establish a Behavioral Health Team, per CPS Comprehensive Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Policy (22-0323-PO1) to oversee the delivery of Tier II and III interventions with guidelines and procedures issued by the Office of Social & Emotional Learning.
• Principals must establish a Culture & Climate Team (CCT) to oversee Tier 1 climate and social-emotional learning improvement strategies with guidelines and procedures issued by the Office of Social & Emotional Learning in collaboration with their Whole School Safety Committee (WSSC) to oversee the establishment and implementation of holistic safety strategies.
• The Office of Social & Emotional Learning will communicate continuous improvement and data transparency indicators in the area of Healing-Centered Culture, Supports and Social-Emotional Interventions as identified in the District Policy for Continuous Improvement and Data Transparency (23-0426- PO4).
• CPS Central Office Departments must integrate key components of the Whole School Safety Framework and Healing-Centered Framework in support of identified stakeholder groups in continuous improvement efforts with guidelines issued by the Office of Safety and Security and the Office of Social & Emotional Learning.
• Violations of this Policy, or the procedures and guidelines issued by the Chief Executive Officer or designee, are subject to discipline in accordance with the Board's Employee Discipline and Due Process Policy.

VIII. Resources

• Please refer to the CPS Whole School Safety Web Page (https://www.cps.edu/services-and-supports/student-safety-and-security/whole-school-safety-plans) which will be updated on an annual basis prior to the start of each school year.
• See the CPS Healing-Centered Web Page (https://www.cps.edu/strategic-initiatives/healing-centered/) for Healing-Centered Framework and updates on key Healing-Centered strategies.
• See the CPS Whole School Safety Intranet page for Implementation Guidelines, Discussion Guides, and all documents needed for the Whole School Safety Process.

IX. Guidelines

• The Office of Safety and Security will partner with collaborating departments, the Cross-Department Mental Health Committee, and the Whole School Safety Steering Committee to develop and implement guidelines, procedures and toolkits for the effective implementation of this Policy and the Whole School Safety Framework.