California Safe and Supportive Schools

The Power of Collaboration in Data-Informed School Climate Improvement

Belonging and Connectedness

The Power of Collaboration in Data-Informed School Climate Improvement

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The California Center for School Climate and the California Department of Education hosted a webinar that highlights data use in action to drive school climate improvement and collaboration.

Sweetwater Union High School District (SUHSD) in Chula Vista and San Diego County Office of Education have been on a data-informed school climate improvement journey. Leaders in the district have operationalized data use as part of ongoing inquiry and improvement efforts, and have forged strong relationships with partners, including their County Office of Education, school site leaders, and service providers, to collectively improve the experiences of students and school staff.

In this recording, leaders from SUHSD and San Diego County Office of Education discussed the role of data in shaping their collaborative work, and also the importance of adaptive elements like trust, open communication, and mutual regard. Viewers will leave with tips and strategies for engaging in collaborative, data-driven improvement in their own schools or districts.

Watch the webinar recording:

View the recording transcript.

View the session resources:

Speakers:

Luis Lopez is a Teacher on Special Assignment for supporting classroom and systemic change in the adoption of equity initiatives, climate & culture improvements, and social emotional learning within the Sweetwater Union High School District. With 24 years of classroom and central office experience, he is passionate about innovating programs, practices, and platforms that braid academic rigor, positive behavior strategies, and social-emotional learning to create classrooms and schools where the adults and the whole child thrive.

Melissa Rains is a Teacher on Special Assignment for Sweetwater Unified High School District, supporting the district’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework. Rains was named a 2022-23 San Diego County Teacher of the Year while she was working at Castle Park Middle School as a science and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Resource Teacher.

Melissa Spadin is the Director, System of Supports at the San Diego County Office of Education where she supports LEAs in LCAP development, Differentiated Assistance, MTSS, SEL implementation, assessment literacy, and measurement design. She has worked on NAEP, state assessments, classroom task development, and formative assessment. She currently contributes to the ISTE Assessment Culture Advisory group, was selected as an inaugural CASEL Fellow, and served on the National Task Force for Assessment Education and The CCSSO FAST SCASS. She began her career in education as a high school English and Theatre teacher, forensics coach, and Theatre Director at Gaithersburg High School in Maryland.

Centering the Experiences and Perspectives of Educational Partners: Five Considerations for Schools and Districts

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This resource highlights how the importance of centering the experiences and perspectives of all educational stakeholders, especially students and families, is essential for cultivating an effective and cohesive school climate. This resource provides valuable perspectives from high school students and recent graduates on how sharing and centering their experiences is fundamentally important to the overall climate of the school. Educational leaders, including school site administrators, district administrators, and other staff dedicated to improving school climate, can select, adapt, and implement the ideas in this resource to strengthen their efforts in building connections and gathering insights from those they aim to serve.

A District Blueprint for Holistic Wellness (LAUSD)

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District- and school- based health and wellness programs are an essential strategy for educational equity, as research shows a clear link between health impacts and academic achievements and outcomes. District wellness policies are essential in shaping the health and wellness environments of educational institutions. Wellness policies that support collaboration, implementation, and evaluation lay the foundation for healthy school environments.

The LAUSD Board of Education adopted the Blueprint for Wellness Policy, which guides the district’s implementation of a comprehensive health and wellness plan for students, families, and staff.

Featured Speakers:

  • William Celestine, Director of Wellness Programs
  • Sandra Vaca-Roman, Healthy Start Program Coordinator
  • Maggie Yu-Dipasquale, Wellness Policy Organization Facilitator
  • Maritsa Adkins, Student and Family Resources Navigator

View the transcript from this audiocast

Download the brief

Creating a Collaborative Classroom Culture (ICEF View Park, Ross Middle School, James Logan High School)

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Studies continue to prove the importance of collaborative learning environments, classrooms have shifted away from emphasizing traditional knowledge transmission principles and toward student-centered learning. Instead of prioritizing lecture-style knowledge dissemination, student- centered classrooms are designed so that students construct skills and understanding through discourse and inquiry. Before students can feel ready to collaborate with and learn from each other in the classroom, teachers must establish a trusting environment and cultivate strong relationships among students that are characterized by mutual respect, openness, and care.

In Part 3 of our educator audiocast series, we spoke to three teachers about creating a collaborative classroom culture:

  • Lavita Jones, Inner City Education Foundation (ICEF) View Park
  • Jim Keating, Ross Middle School
  • Abby Noche, James Logan High School

View the transcript from this audiocast

Download the brief

Educator Panel: Creating Healing, Restorative Learning Ecosystems

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In light of all the challenges currently facing students, educators, and families, how can educators create healing, restorative ecosystems? In this two-part panel recording, learn about the approaches that system leaders can take to create healing environments for teachers. Panelists will also share instructional practices they draw upon to cultivate healing learning spaces for their students. Topics and questions for this panel were informed by CCSC Youth Advisory Team members.

Watch the session recording:

View the session transcript

Session resources:

Panelists:

Dr. Martin Canizales Cobos is a Spanish teacher for Mount Eden High School in Hayward, California. Canizales is from Monterrey, Mexico, where he graduated from the School of Medicine of the Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon. He has three specialties and more than 10 years of experience in critical care and pulmonology. He is now a licensed teacher with four years of teaching experience, contributing to his community to promote changes that can provide opportunities for young people while they are learning in a safe and healthy environment. Dr. Canizales is also a writer, and likes running and traveling.

Kyley Hironaka is a sixth-year public school educator who currently works and lives in San Francisco. She has experience working in various communities with diverse racial, ethnic, ability, and socioeconomic needs. She spent four years in the classroom teaching kindergarten and 4th grade and has recently transitioned to teaching elementary physical education. Kyley has always been passionate about education and sociology and believes in lifelong learning. In her spare time, she enjoys good food with good company and traveling to new places.

Lavita Jones is a 4th grade teacher at Inner City Education Foundation (ICEF) View Park. She has been with ICEF for over eight years and has had many roles including instructional aide, math coach, intervention specialist, behavior interventionist, and now teacher. She has her BA in Psychology from California State University, Sacramento and an MA in education from Alder Graduate School of Education. Lavita feels blessed to say that teaching is her passion and she loves what she does. Her goal is to give back to her community by serving as a loving and caring teacher who only wants the best for all students and their families. She is from Los Angeles herself and comes from a large family with seven siblings.

Bobby Pelz is an ethnic studies teacher at Watsonville High School. He earned a BA in English from the University of Washington, an MA in Education from the University of San Francisco, and an MA in Education Leadership from San Jose State University. He began his career teaching at Cupertino High School before taking a break from teaching to focus on investing and philanthropy. During this time, Bobby founded 25Books, a program that provides free books to kids. He has since returned to teaching and now enjoys both gifting books to kids in his district through the program and educating them when they get to Watsonville High.

Panel Moderators:

Krystal Wu (she/her) serves as Technical Assistance Provider for the California Center for School Climate. Krystal is also a Program Associate with the Resilient and Healthy Schools and Communities team where she delivers technical assistance, designs professional learning, and develops evidence-based resources to cultivate safe and supportive learning environments. With expertise in culturally responsive and sustaining education, co-design, and school climate, Krystal centers the voices and experiences of community members in all of her work, especially those who have been kept furthest from opportunity. She currently leads the Safe and Supportive Learning Environments Deep Dive professional learning courses focused on racial equity and belonging through the California Center for School Climate and the Center to Improve Social and Emotional Learning and School Safety.

Shazia Hashmi (she/her) serves as a Technical Assistance Provider for the California Center for School Climate. As a Program Associate at WestEd, Shazia translates and applies research on equitable, developmentally appropriate strategies to support state education agencies, district leaders, and educators in serving communities. She supports research and technical assistance projects that focus on improving practices in social–emotional learning, school climate, and community engagement. She currently develops professional learning to build statewide capacity for authentic, meaningful community partnerships as a part of CCEE’s Community Engagement Initiative.

Transformative School Culture: Looking Beyond the Numbers to Support

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The pressure to raise student achievement has contributed to a dysfunctional system based on assessment scores and attendance rates, losing sight that behind those numbers is a child with challenges who may be losing hope, vision, and self-worth. Transformation means change, and change can be uncomfortable, but it is necessary because our children’s lives are at risk. It must be our responsibility to collaborate and build an education community that understands our students’ and families’ needs; supports and advocates for them; and promotes equity so that our students feel connected to adults that care for, love, and believe in them, giving them hope to succeed. Transformative school cultures empower our students to become confident, responsible, and caring citizens. Students will then take ownership to attain academic achievement and social and emotional success.  

In this recording, the presenter will share the importance of creating student portraits as a way to utilize different data to learn how to support the whole child. She will also highlight the value of networking to build supports for students and to connect them with resources. 

Watch the session recording:

View the session transcript

Session resources:

Session Speaker: 

Judith Sanchez is a principal at Leavenworth Elementary School in Fresno Unified School District, the third-largest district in California. With 22 years as an educator in both elementary and secondary levels, Judith has a wide range of experience both inside and outside the classroom, in areas such as leading curriculum development, heading WASC accreditation, supervising and evaluating teachers, and organizing student activities. Her professional experience adds value in supporting teachers, staff, and community in achieving and maintaining a safe school culture and a commitment to student success. She believes that, as educators, it is our responsibility to provide the tools necessary to ensure our students are successful citizens, and to instill in them the desire to grow and be better people for themselves, their families, and their communities. Ms. Sanchez holds a master’s degree in administration leadership preparation from CSU Fresno and has been part of a Latino Leadership Cohort through Central Valley Latino Leadership Academy (CVLLA).

Session Moderator: 

Timothy Ojetunde (he/him) serves as a Technical Assistance Provider for the California Center for School Climate.

Timothy is also a Program Associate at WestEd with Resilient and Healthy Schools and Communities (RHSC) who supports districts and schools in centering equity and improving educational outcomes for all. Timothy’s expertise is grounded in school culture and climate, restorative practices, SEL, and trauma-informed practices, as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion. Timothy comes to WestEd with over a decade of knowledge and experience across multiple spaces and communities having been a teacher, advisory and school culture specialist, school administrator, and DEI consultant. In his work, he has coached school administrators, presented to leaders, and facilitated sessions for hundreds of educators and learners across multiple conferences. He is extremely passionate about creating equitable outcomes and is dedicated to supporting students and adults as they grow, develop, and find success.