This post is part one of a three-part blog series that explores how to help students transform bullying behavior. The series mirrors the three levels of intervention outlined in the Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports (PBIS). Level One (the focus of this blog) applies to the 80 percent of students who are responsive when explicitly taught about acceptable behavior. The second blog will address Level Two, the 15 percent of students who need social skills training and tools to help them stop bullying.
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January 13, 2014 - 1:51pm
Every January, we remember the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and his inspiring dream for a country free of oppression and hatred. The year "1963 is not an end, but a beginning," Dr. King declared on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to hundreds of thousands of hopeful listeners. His dream has yet to be fully realized, but the fight for equality continues today.
The communities featured in Embracing the Dream: Lessons from the Not In Our Town Movement highlight some of the victories in this march for social justice. Four individual films are included in this collection. Each film is preceded by individual perspectives on Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy today. You may also download the Embracing the Dream discussion guide, which is useful to spark discussion in your classroom, boardroom or lunchroom. We are so pleased that schools, churches and corporations will be incorporating these stories into their holiday lesson plans and activities.
December 27, 2013 - 10:42am
In the aftermath of the 2008 murder of Ecuadorian immigrant Marcelo Lucero in Patchogue, NY, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) launched a comprehensive investigation into the operations of the Suffolk County Police Department. The DOJ spent several years on this investigation of discriminatory policing against Latinos. This month they tentatively agreed to a settlement with the Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), which calls for SCPD to implement new and enhanced policies and procedures to ensure nondiscrimination in the provision of police services to Latino communities in Suffolk County.
Key DOJ findings include:
◾ Inconsistent tracking and reporting of hate crimes
◾ Failure to instruct officers adequately to understand what hate crimes are
◾ Police policy and instructional documents containing “vague and inconsistent” guidance on hate crimes; for example, not making clear that youth could be charged with hate crimes
◾ Failure to recognize the severity of criminal conduct by brushing off attacks as “just kids being kids”
DOJ recommendations included the following:
