School Safety Reporting James, Kris, Terri, Christy, and Jarrod Colorado High School Teachers

The Problem The current School Accountability Report (SAR) provides an inaccurate picture of the school safety environment.

Who Has a Problem?

Current Policy Current SAR uses categories for providing data for school safety. SB 186

Disagreements in Community Some (school officials) might say the information shouldn’t be reported because it makes schools look bad. Parents who have students who attend schools where the data looks good or where the data looks bad. Original creators of the SAR. Governor Owens

Alternative 1: Modify the “Safety and Discipline” statistics to be more specific Advantages Gives a truer picture of what the deviations are Provide information that reflects/means what parents think it reflects/means Gets rid of some of the inaccuracies Will make comparisons between schools easier

Alternative 1: Modify the “Safety and Discipline” statistics to be more specific Disadvantages Might not be continuity between different levels of government (NCLB, SAR, School Districts) Laws will have to be changed to incorporate new categories Could end up with something more complex than what we started with A negative perception of school safety because of the additional information Number of things that are reported may reflect how policies are enforced rather than school safety

Alternative 2: Remove “Safe and Orderly School Features” section Advantages Current categories are unclear and undefined Current categories are inaccurately reported Specific words (allows and encourages) do not have meaning – it does not say whether those things are actually happening Disadvantages Connects with “Safety and Discipline” statistics Provides information that some parents want to have Shows an action plan to take care of problems

Alternative 3: Modify the “Safety and School Environment” panel of the SAR to include a single indicator (,  ) of the safety and school environment as designated by the school principal. Advantages: Simple portrayal of safety and school environment Disadvantages: May not include an accurate portrayal of safety and school environment

Our Proposed Policy We are modifying the reporting of the “Safety and Discipline” category in the Safety and School Environment Panel of the SAR.

Our modifications to the SAR will include: Type of Incident in Column 1 should be re- categorized as follows: Use or possession of drugs, alcohol, or tobacco Distribution of drugs, alcohol, or tobacco Violence towards other students (including, but not limited to, intimidation, fights, threats) Violence towards staff (including, but not limited to, intimidation, fights, threats) Violations of school code of conduct* (including, but not limited to, behavior, truancy, theft, and dress code) not including violence or illegal substances Possession of weapons as defined by school code of conduct

Modifications (continued) Column 2 should remain as is. Column 3 will be added to read as follows: Number of Incidents Reported per 100 students Current column 4 (Action Taken) which is sub- columned will include the following changes: Referred to Law Enforcement will say Law Enforcement intervention including ticketing or arrest Delete the Other column *Include a footnote that states that a school’s code of conduct is annually distributed to students at their perspective school

Is it Constitutional? Yes Our proposed changes will not violate the state constitution.

Agency of Government State Government State Department of Education Individual School Districts throughout the state

Steps we will follow: 1. Write a draft of our proposed changes. 2. Contact a state legislator. 3. Work with legislator. a) Help gain support of Parent/Teacher Organizations. b) Help gather research/resources 1) Meet with State Education officials 2) Meet with education-related associations such as CEA, CASB, CASE, ECS, and Independence Institute c) Assist with drafting an editorial to assist the legislator with getting the issue into the public.

Steps (continued) 4. Get bill introduced into one of the houses of the General Assembly. 5. Use mafia connections to line up votes.

Supporters School administrators, faculty, and staff Parents Supporters of school choice Those who believe that accurate data lead to quality decision-making

Opponents Original creators of the SAR Governor Owens (?) Those who believe that data cannot accurately reflect school safety or the school environment Schools and/or communities that will be shown in a negative light with the new data

Sources Pam Benigno, Director, Education Policy Center, Independence Institute Kathy Christie, Vice President, Education Commission of the States Kristen Engel Waters, Principle, Bruce Randolph Middle School, Denver Public Schools Alex Halpern, Halpern Law Firm, Boulder State Legislation: and School Accountability Reports ( Senator Sue Windels, Chair, Senate Education Committee, State of Colorado