Safe School Ambassadors Improve School ClimateMar 03 2010by Helen Perdue, SSA Trainer and Outreach CoordinatorAmidst a climate of increasing violence, bullying, and mistreatment in our schools, there is hope. And there is action! Safe School Ambassadors are out on the front lines, effectively helping to prevent and reduce incidents of mistreatment in over 800 schools across the country. So what exactly do Ambassadors do and how does it work to improve school climate? I’ll explain more about what Safe School Ambassadors learn and do at the end of this Blog. But first, let’s hear from Safe School Ambassadors themselves about how the program works, in their own words. A 5th-grade Ambassador explains that he has learned: “The Change starts with me and ripples out from there. Small changes can really make a difference.” A high school senior tells the story of how he used the Ambassador Action of “Reasoning,” with himself: “Basically, I ambassadored myself. I saw a guy who I really didn’t like and I wanted to just beat him up. But instead, I asked myself, ‘What about football?’ [I might get kicked off the team if I get into a fight.] Then I decided to just go and play basketball to get my mind off of it and cool down.” This high school Ambassador shows how she used an Ambassador Action, “Distracting,” with one of her friends to make a difference: “I was walking through the Quad with my friend and she was having a pretty rough day. A guy ran by us, shoved her shoulder and yelled, “Learn to walk, XXXX (bleep!).” It was the icing on the cake for her; I thought she was going to break down and cry. As tears started to well up in her eyes, I suggested we go get cornbread from the snack bar. On our way over, I recalled an inside joke and she laughed a bit. I know she felt better after I distracted her from the mean situation…. Little stories like this happen daily here at (my) high school and every day lives are truly changed because of this program, because of us.” Another high school Ambassador from Texas shows how the SSA program has affected her, and how she has been able to influence others: “My year in the SSA Program has been so fantastic! I feel so great with my abilities as an ambassador; I have impacted so many people. I have taught my friends many of the Ambassador Actions, and also have taken my skills home and put them into effect…I have felt better as a person knowing that I was a part of this amazing program.” This high school Ambassador highlights vital steps in the Ambassador’s Job; his inspiring words illuminate the rewards of this work: “I think in order to be able to change the world, you shall change yourself first…you need to think right before you act, and say something offensive…and when you burst with joy that you have changed yourself, your next task will be to change the world.” These students have taken to heart, and action, the lessons of the Safe School Ambassadors Program; they are making positive changes within themselves, with their peers, and in their school environment. They are helping to make schools safer, friendlier places for all students to grow and learn. Thank you Ambassadors! But Ambassadors do not fly into a ‘situation of mistreatment’ with capes on; nor do they wear badges of honor with credentials to ‘intervene.’ They are not part of a ‘quick fix’ solution to the epidemic of violence and bullying in schools. Rather, Safe School Ambassadors are the embodiment of a slow, deep change –a change in attitude and acceptance—of what is an ‘okay’ or ‘not okay’ way to treat each other. The Safe School Ambassadors Program works from the ‘Inside-Out.’ It starts by working on the insides of people, with the premise that positive school climate change will most effectively happen when the most influential people –the students themselves—are motivated and supported to change their own behavior. They can, in turn, help change others’.
Recent PostsFifth Grader Takes Action Against BullyingZiainey Stokes, a young student from West Philadelphia certainly provides timely evidence that schools are in critical need of programs such as Safe School Ambassadors to prevent violence and bullying in schools. CM Executive Director Delivers Keynote Address at Bullying Prevention Conference in BostonAs the Keynote Speaker, Community Matters Executive Director, Rick Phillips, shared with the audience that building a safer school climate is a complex process that requires a balance between attending to security as well as relationships. The Cost and Benefits of Caring in Spite of Bullying and Violent TraumaWhen schools tap into the power of the students and take time to show that they care, especially students affected by trauma, students become empowered. Bullying, Stress and Health: A Crisis in the MakingHere are some facts we have collected (and there are hundreds more) about the short- and long-term health effects of bullying: Chicago Public Schools: Violence and Death or Peacemakers Prevail?Like many urban areas, Chicago faces many challenges. The turf wars in various neighborhoods, the gang activity among youth, and the lack of resources for safe schools has compounded the obstacles facing school administrators and teachers. |