When a survey of students at Eisenhower Middle School in Everett, Washington indicated that they spent a good part of the school day feeling tired and hungry, that they felt unsafe in some areas of the school, and that worn-down facilities left many of them feeling depressed, the author and his staff concluded that, in order to improve the…

A Maryland middle school helps students navigate passage to high school with 10 crossings: parent engagement, mentoring transitional opportunities program, a middle-school exit form, a special assembly, a closing ceremony, a unification process, departmental articulation, a roundtable involving middle- and high-school principals, and a high-school…

The Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design approach blends effective design with occupants' physical, social, and psychological needs. CPTED principles work via three overlapping strategies: increasing occupants' territorial concern or watchfulness; improving natural surveillance features; and controlling people's access to spaces within a…

Following the legislature's passage of the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act, the statewide Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership was established. The 700 graduates form a small cadre of activists who are informed about standards-based reforms and how to make them work for their children. (MLH)

Step Nine focuses on establishing and maintaining a safe, secure, learning environment. The classroom focus arrests early unacceptable behaviors, identifies habitual rule-breakers, and preserves environmental integrity for self-disciplined learners. Chief elements are simplicity, consistency, communication, parental involvement, and progressive…