Schools should be safe places for young people, educators, school staff, and community members, and policies and practices can help create learning environments where kids thrive. Gun violence in U.S. schools has prompted calls for increased school safety measures; however, which policies contribute to safe school environments is often a topic of…

Gang affiliation is not something that students leave behind when they come to school. Gang members do not leave their behaviors, attitudes, and conflicts outside the school environment. Gangs, unchecked and unidentified in a school setting, often engage in threat and intimidation; physical and cyber bullying; fighting; recruiting; and criminal…

It is well-documented that students of color, and other historically underserved students, have had less access to an equitable and supportive learning environment, perpetuating school failure and, too often, a school-to-prison pipeline that is difficult to escape. This report shows how a number of states are taking advantage of opportunities in…

President Biden is committed to seeking and providing the necessary resources to support the safe operation of institutions of higher education (IHEs) and addressing the ongoing impacts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic on higher education students, adult education students, faculty, and staff. In Volume 3 of this Handbook, a series to support…

This list of resources offers promising strategies that communities and policymakers can use to make sustainable advances in achieving equitable transportation systems. Resources are organized into seven categories: transportation equity, Safe Routes to School, school siting, complete streets, non-motorized transportation, community design, and…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Congress Passes FY 2009 Omnibus Bill: Bill Will Provide $4.45 Billion Increase for U.S. Department of Education; (2)…

Taking action now can save lives, prevent injury, and minimize property damage in the moments of a crisis. The importance of reviewing and revising school and district plans cannot be underscored enough. This guide helps in navigating this process by giving schools, districts, and communities the critical concepts and components of good crisis…

Some exercises are misused and abused by people of all ages, and increased age magnifies the bad effects of these exercises. Senior citizens in particular should be aware of the possible damage that some exercises, particularly when done unsupervised, pose to their physical health. This paper describes 56 common exercises and alternatives to those…

Youth violence is widely recognized as a critical problem in the United States, and many approaches to prevention and intervention have been developed in recent years. Although children are safer in school than anywhere else, school violence remains a serious concern, and schools have proven to be among the most accessible nexuses for prevention…

Dramatic improvements have been made in the lives of children over the last century. Even so, many health and safety challenges remain unresolved. For example, unintentional injuries claim the lives of more children each year than any other cause of death. In addition, a panel of pediatricians reported that the incidence of childhood obesity…

Weight-related problems, including eating disorders, disordered eating, and obesity, are prevalent among adolescents. School and community-based educators and health care providers have an important role to play in the prevention of weight-related problems in youth. This article includes: 1) a brief overview of weight-related problems in…

This guide provides basic guidelines to help schools, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies, analyze their vulnerability to violence, theft, and vandalism, and suggest possible technologies to effectively address these problems. It describes existing commercially available technologies and urges thoughtful consideration of not only the…

This reference book, developed to present options for the prevention and treatment of child sexual abuse, contains descriptions of creative approaches used to address the problem of child sexual abuse. Some of the programs described offer active and entertaining interventions, such as puppet shows, coloring books, stories, teddy bears, and…

Alcohol-related riots among university students pose a significant problem for police agencies that serve college communities. The intensity of the disturbances may vary. However, the possible outcomes include property destruction and physical violence and are a serious threat to community and officer safety. This report provides a framework for…

This booklet provides data and information to show that substance abuse prevention is working and encourages all sectors of society to become involved. Twenty percent of the document features background information about what's working to prevent substance abuse, lists of risk and protective factors, data that show the relationship between…