A community task force is proposing some ideas it believes will improve the climate in Rochester schools.
They are designed to complement the recently recommended changes to the district's code of conduct, but unlike those proposals, these recommended changes don't need the formal approval of the school board.
Community task force member Rosemary Rivera says some board members and district officials were directly involved in the process that resulted in these recommendations, and they've already started to implement some of them.
One proposal is to mandate ongoing anti-racism training for all school personnel, including the Board of Education, the superintendent, and the superintendent’s employee group.
"The issue isn't whether people are individually racist, but we do know because of the outcomes that we have that institutional racism does exist," Rivera said. She said that is based on the fact that a disproportionate number of Black, Latino and disabled students are suspended for non-violent incidents.
Other ideas include a streamlined effort, using programs already in place, to engage parents.
"What that looks like for each parent could be very different. It does not mean that because they cannot come to a PTA meeting that they are not engaged that they are not involved," Rivera said.
A proposed "Student Help Zone" would designate a room where students can go for support when they or their teacher sense that they need to de-escalate an incident that may result in disciplinary action or suspension. Students who are facing suspension would have an opportunity to speak with adults at their school about what happened both before the suspension starts and again before the student resumes classes.
The task force recommends a school based "Office of Student Life" similar to those seen on college campuses to promote student leadership and engage students to contribute to ideas to improve school climate.
