The California Department of Education (CDE) is implementing several programs that are designed to help its schools ensure they are safe and supportive, thereby improving student outcomes.  Below are descriptions of three such programs.

Safe and Supportive Schools
With a U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students Safe and Supportive Schools grant, CDE is increasing the capacity of participating local education agencies and their eligible schools to improve conditions for learning and provide safe and supportive schools for students. The program will (1) develop an improved measurement system to support Cal-SCHLS, the state’s current comprehensive data system; (2) increase local and state capacity to understand and effectively use data to improve conditions for learning; (3) systematically integrate conditions for learning into statewide school improvement efforts; and (4) build a successful, replicable, and sustainable model of program intervention. Stay informed about California's Safe and Supportive Schools work through the School Climate Connection Newsletter.

Building State Capacity for Preventing Youth Substance Use and Violence Prevention
With a U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students Building State Capacity grant, CDE is maintaining state capacity for preventing youth substance use and school violence in California. The project allows CDE to assist LEAs in their efforts to maintain their school-based prevention programs serving 6.2 million students in California. Also, CDE will disseminate information to site level practitioners; provide knowledge of practices for infusing prevention and school climate activities into the academic curriculum; provide statewide leadership in alcohol, other drug, and violence prevention; assist LEAs with creating partnerships to maximize use of resources; and create linkages and increase opportunities to collaborate at the state and local level.

Safe Schools/Healthy Students
Since 1999 the U.S. Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, and Justice have collaboratively funded and supported the Safe Schools/Healthy Students (SS/HS) Initiative. The SS/HS Initiative is a discretionary grant to implement a coordinated SS/HS comprehensive plan of activities, curricula, programs, and services that focus on creating safe school environments, promoting healthy childhood development, and preventing youth violence and alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) use, henceforth referred to as the SS/HS comprehensive plan. An eligible applicant is a local educational agency (LEA) or a consortium of LEAs that partner with their local public mental health, law enforcement, and juvenile justice agencies to develop and submit a community-specific SS/HS comprehensive plan that addresses five elements. California has several grantee sites.

 

The California Department of Education (CDE) assesses school safety and conditions for learning in the state by using The California School Climate, Health, and Learning Survey (CAL-SCHLS) System to collect school safety, engagement, and environment data. The CAL-SCHLS System is comprised of three interrelated surveys developed for and supported by the California Department of Education: 1) The California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS); 2) The California School Climate Survey (CSCS) for staff; and 3) The California School Parent Survey (CSPS)These surveys provide schools and districts with critical information about the learning and teaching environment, the health and well-being of students, and supports for parents, school staff, and students that foster learning and school success. When used together, data from these three surveys help assess the needs, concerns, and successes of the whole school community – teachers, students, and parents - and allow schools and districts to compare perceptions about the status of these areas across stakeholder groups.
 

On a biannual basis, California collects data on priority health-risk behaviors and the prevalence of obesity and asthma among youth and young adults as part of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS). Of the six indicators collected for each State on the Safe and Supportive Schools Website, California only collects one, Indicator 6.  Below is data for Indicator 6 for California and the United States.