Below are just some of our violence prevention efforts in each of our secondary buildings. For additional information, please contact your building principal.
At Spring Creek Sixth Grade Center, students and staff participate in regular Olweus bullying prevention class meetings and have been focusing on bystander education in response to bullying or violence and how to report to school officials when these things happen. Recent PBIS lessons have focused on respect and being kind to others. In addition, Spring Creek staff members have been participating in staff development on how to de-escalate negative behaviors in a school setting. Staff members are learning about a variety of strategies to consider using when they recognize escalating student behaviors. Most importantly, Spring Creek staff have been communicating with families what types of behaviors are occurring in school so parents can talk to their children about how to respond when they encounter conflict. We value the strong partnership we have with Spring Creek families, and we know that together we will continue to maintain a safe place to learn and work.
At Southeast Polk Junior High our students participate in weekly Olweus lessons during advisory. The Olweus program’s goals are to reduce and prevent bullying and violence among students and to improve peer relationships at school. During flex class opportunities we have covered the handbook and student behavior expectations in the classroom. Southeast Polk Junior High is also a Positive Behavior Intervention Support (PBIS) School that recognizes students for doing the “right thing”.
At Southeast Polk High School, all ninth and tenth grade students receive a series of lessons delivered by junior and senior mentors as part of our Mentors in Violence Prevention program. Our mentors are trained by our staff who partner with the Center for Violence Prevention at the University of Northern Iowa. This school year, a building leadership team of adult professionals has worked with student mentors to deliver lessons to our younger students regarding respect, social media and conflict, and the role of bystanders.
