On December 5, 2018, the Communities for Just Schools Fund (CJSF) released “Do the Harder Work–Create Cultures of Connectedness in Schools,” a report responding to the proceedings of the Federal Commission on School Safety and calls to “harden” schools. The Commission was appointed after the Parkland tragedy to make “meaningful and actionable recommendations to keep students safe at school.”

The report launch was held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. as well as livestreamed.  The event included a panel of CJSF’s community partners–youth, family, and community organizers from around the country—who provided a roadmap for the harder work of fostering “cultures of connectedness” by investing in restorative justice, culturally relevant curricula, diverse teaching staff, anti-bias training for educators, mental and emotional health supports and more. Gwinnett SToPP’s Executive Director served on the panel to speak about our community’s work on these issues.

Since the writing of this report, the Commission released its final recommendations and subsequently rescinded the Federal School Discipline Guidance. While rescinding the guidance documents does not change existing civil rights laws and the law is still the law, it now leaves school systems to navigate the waters of students’ civil rights without a beacon. The hardening of schools coupled with the rescission of the guidance will lead to more students experiencing discrimination based on race/ethnicity, education program and gender.

Many advocates and communities are continuing to push back on these policies that negatively impact our children.