On February 16-18, 2021, the National Institute of Justice hosted the Virtual Conference on School Safety: Bridging Research to Practice to Safeguard Our Schools. The conference brought together researchers, educators, law enforcement, mental health professionals, from federal agencies, national and state school safety organizations, and others in an effort to disseminate key findings, provide firsthand accounts of implementing research into the field, and engage in conversation on how to better bridge research and practice.
The conference provided accounts of NIJ-funded projects to develop and evaluate efforts to improve the safety of students in K-12 schools. Projects addressed violence and victimization, student discipline, information gathering on threats, bullying, school climate, student trauma and mental health challenges, the role of school resource officers, and many others. These are just some of the topics covered during the conference. The presentations and discussions during the conference highlight what we have learned about the effectiveness of various school safety programs, successes and challenges faced during program implementation, the causes and consequences of school violence, and other relevant issues.
The projects discussed are among the approximately 100 that NIJ has funded through the Comprehensive School Safety Initiative and with funding from the STOP School Violence Act to improve the safety of our nation’s schools and students through rigorous research that produces practical knowledge.
Watch Recorded Sessions
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- Student Threat Assessment as a Safe and Supportive Prevention Strategy, Dewey Cornell
- Evaluation of the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System to Improve School Safety, Justin Heinze and Hsing-Fang Hsieh
- This is Not a Drill: Student and Staff Comprehension of Emergency Operations Protocols for School Violence, Josh Hendrix
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- Student Perceptions of School Safety and the Transition to a New School: Is there a Honeymoon Effect?, Dan Abad and Chris Melde
- School Transition and School Violence: Longitudinal Research in Oregon Emma Espel Villarreal, Paul Smokowski and Julia Dmitrieva
- Daily routines and social interactions as contexts for school violence: a qualitative study, Bernadette Hohl
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A Randomized Controlled Trial of Restorative Justice in New York City High Schools, Lama Hassoun Ayoub
- Pursuing Equitable and Restorative Communities (PERC) Initiative: Pittsburgh's Restorative Practices Program, John Engberg
- The Impact of the Safe Public Spaces in Schools Program on School Safety, Student Behavior, and Discipline Events, Kimberly Kendizora and Juliette Berg
- Dismantling the School-to-Prison Pipeline While Enhancing School Safety: The Philadelphia Police School Diversion Program, Naomi Goldstein
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- Reducing Youth Violence by Leveraging the Influence of Network Brokers: Preliminary Results of Comprehensive School-Wide Intervention, Richard Gilman
- Evaluating the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program in U.S. Urban Middle Schools, Terri Sullivan - Randomized Impact Evaluation of the No Bully System, Thomas Hanson
- A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Interventions to Decrease Cyberbullying Perpetration and Victimization, Josh Polanin
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- Exploring the Relationship Between School Climate and Safety: Restorative Justice and PBIS, Troy Smith, Karen Crews, Sean Kelly
- The Causes and Consequences of School Violence: The Impact of Social Media on Delinquency, Timothy McCuddy
- Suspension Diversion and Gang Prevention: Taking a Comprehensive Approach to School Safety, Stephanie Hawkins
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- Implementation of a Trauma-Informed Approach to PBIS, Ryan Fink
- Studying Implementation of PBIS in Rural Schools During Challenging Times, Lindsey Turner
- Integrated Supports for Vulnerable Middle School Students: Importance of Implementation and Context in Randomized Controlled Trials, Lauren Decker-Woodrow
- National Institute of Justice’s Comprehensive School Safety Framework, Mary Carlton, Nadine Frederique, and Caleb Hudgins
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- School Discipline, Safety, and Climate: A Comprehensive Study in New York City, Elise Jensen
- Randomized Impact Evaluation of Capturing Kids’ Hearts Program, Thomas Hanson
- Comprehensive Assessment of School Climate to Improve Safety in Maryland Middle Schools, Catherine Bradshaw and Elise Pas
- Improving School Safety in the District of Columbia: Lessons Learned From an Evaluation of Safe School Certification, Renee Ryberg
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- Mixed-Methods Evaluation of K-12 School Security Professionals & School Resource Officers Online Training: Understanding Trauma and Social-Emotional Learning, Dorothy Espelage
- Strengthening Culturally-Responsive Practices to Promote and Students’ Social-Emotional Wellbeing in Urban Schools, Jessika Bottiani and Duane Thomas
- An Evidence-based Approach to School Policing, Trevor Fronius, Kathy Martinez-Prather, and Brenda Scheuermann
- An Examination of School Policing Programs: Where We Have Been and Where We Need to Go Next, Joseph McKenna and Anthony Petrosino
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- Interconnecting PBIS and School Mental Health to Improve School Safety: A Randomized Trial, Mark Weist and Joni Splett
- Project SECURE: A Multi-tiered Approach to Supporting Students Exposed to Trauma, Carl Sumi
- School Safety and School-Based Mental Health Services in a Large Metropolitan School District, Anna Yaros and James Trudeau
- Promoting School Safety: A Comprehensive Emotional and Behavioral Health Model, Jill Bohnenkamp and Cindy Schaeffer
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- Evaluating the Implementation of a Multicomponent, School-Based Mental Health Program: Lessons Learned from a Southeastern Site, Kristina Childs Fisher and Sara Bryson
- School and Family Engagement
- Trauma Informed (SAFE-TI) Research Findings and A District's Sustainable Path Forward, Marilyn King and Johanna Bertken
- Using Trauma-Informed Approaches in Schools to Foster Resilience among Urban Black Youth Exposed to Neighborhood Violence, Stacy Overstreet
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- Findings and Lessons from the School Emergency Preparedness Study, Suyapa Silvia - Perception Versus Reality
- Physical Security at K-12 Schools in Arizona, Thomas Foley
- Securing Schools? School Violence and Engagement with Security Measures in One Urban School District, Matthew Cuellar
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- Assessing a Comprehensive Framework to Reduce School Violence, Beverly Kingston and Alison Dymnicki
- Project SOARS (Student Ownership, Accountability and Responsibility for School Safety): Successes and Challenges, Claudia Vincent and Dorothy Espelage
- School-based Coordination & Integration Efforts as Part of a Comprehensive School Safety Initiative, Joseph McCrary and Christopher Henrich
- Developing a Longitudinal Dataset to Study the Relations Between Community and School Context and Student Outcomes, Maury Nation and Caroline Christopher
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- School Climate, Safety, and Inequality: Highlighting the Significance of Context and Place, Melissa Ripepi, Nicholas Read, Amy Ernstes, Patricia Campie, and Anthony Peguero
- Different Disciplinarians in Schools: The Impact of SROs and Principals on School Safety and Student Outcomes, Lucy Sorenson and Shawn Bushway
- An Evaluation of a Comprehensive Approach to Reducing Disparities in School Discipline, Anna Yaros and Cheryl Roberts
- Immigration and School Threat?: Exploring the Significance of the Border, Trey Marchbanks
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- A Taxonomy of Law Enforcement Engagement in Rural Schools, Mario Scalora
- School Resource Officers in Suburban Elementary Schools, F. Chris Curran
- Is It All Just Law Enforcement? Understanding the Diverse Roles of Police in Schools, Benjamin Fisher
- School Resource Officer (SRO) Roles and Training: Perspectives from the Field, Gerard Lawson and Laura Welfare
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- Longitudinal Research on Violence Directed against Teachers: Prevalence, Negative Consequences and School Responses, Byongook Moon and John McCluskey
- Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of PreK-12 Students by School Personnel: A Policy Implementation Study, Billie-Jo Grant
- Teacher Perceptions of School Safety and Climate, Jennifer Maeng
- Coaching and Mixed-Reality Practice to Improve Teachers’ Detection and Prevention of and Intervention with Bullying in Middle School Classrooms, Elise Pas and Catherine Bradshaw
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