Exactly one year ago, the federal government rescinded guidelines put in place in 2014 to address racial disparities in school discipline, guidelines that align quite extensively with the Unconditional Education approach in schools. The guiding principles included:

1. A Focus on School Climate and Prevention Efforts
2. Clear, Appropriate, and Consistent Expectations and Consequences
3. Training School Staff to apply Discipline Equitably and focus on Continuous Improvement

While these 2014 guidelines were not binding, they did send a clear message from the federal level that schools should be paying attention to and addressing disproportionality in their discipline practices, particularly their exclusionary practices such as suspension.

The reason given by the federal department of education for rescinding these guidelines in 2018 focus on school autonomy. Betsy DeVos shared in a statement that, “Our decision to rescind that guidance today makes it clear that discipline is a matter on which classroom teachers and local school leaders deserve and need autonomy. I would encourage them to continue to implement discipline reforms that they believe will foster improved outcomes for their students."

This shift in policy removes a certain level of expectation and pressure for schools to focus efforts on creating equitable learning environments for students. The misguided nature of this shift in policy has been highlighted even further by a recent study out of Stanford that shows a link between the achievement gap and racial disparities in school discipline:

Name: Rose Triest
Your Position: Mental Health Counselor at Sequoia Elementary school 
What led you to your current position: It has always been my passion to provide care for those who perceive as ones that "can't be helped." After working with youth leaving the juvenile justice system I was looking for an opportunity with the same goal of helping those no matter the circumstance. In my move back to northern California, a friend told me of Seneca and their model of Unconditional education and care that caught my eye.
Fun Fact/Quote: "feelings are for the soul what food is for the body." -Rudolf Steiner 
What does your average day look like: I work in a Counseling Enriched Classroom at Sequoia Elementary with seven kids, in which I provide unconditional care and am available as a resource and support to the students. I work with the students on building their social emotional needs and prepare them to transition to a less restrictive classroom by providing a safe environment for the students to express themselves and help to meet their needs.  My favorite place to be is in the garden we created for the students to have a sanctuary and a space to have some hands on sensory activities. A day can be anything from supporting a student in a mainstream classroom, facilitating a classroom activity, engaging in self-reflections with students so that they are mindful of their actions and behaviors, creating a safety plan to support the success of students at school, or even making smoothies with them!
Why do you do this work: I have always wanted to work with children by providing safety and support for them so that they are comfortable to express themselves. I have worked with youth in many different capacities and contexts, and being a mental health counselor particularly interested me because of the idea of giving students extra support in a classroom so that they have a stronger foundation to grow and transition to another classroom. From working with the students at my school, I can see how having support that connects school to home is truly beneficial.

​Lodestar is an EL Education School with a project-based model, supporting students in becoming lifelong changemakers. Lodestar is the sister school to Lighthouse Community Charter school and first open it’s door in 2015 at the Patten University campus in the Fruitvale District in Oakland, CA. After two short years on this campus, the school was forced to change locations to the St. Jarlath Church campus in 2017 until finding their forever home in Sobrante Park in 2018.
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Currently located in Sobrante Park, the school leads with core values of Agency, Social Justice, Integrity, Love, and Community:

• COMMUNITY: We are best when we respect, value and celebrate our diversity and strengthen our connections.
• INTEGRITY: We act on our shared and personal values, especially in the face of adversity.
• LOVE: We extend ourselves so that all feel a sense of belonging and acceptance.
• SOCIAL JUSTICE: We act with courage and commitment to move toward a just and equitable world.
• AGENCY: We are empowered to pursue purposeful action as life-long changemakers.

Lodestar is in our 4th year of operation. It’s currently K-8 and are growing to be K-12. They currently broke ground this year and in process to building their high school. There’s lots of exciting growth and potential for Lodestar in the coming years. 

Name: Mercedes Hudson
Your Position: School Psychologist Intern
What led you to your current position: It has always been my passion to work with, support, and advocate for students and their families. When deciding what to study for my master's degree, I was inspired by other school psychologists in my program (Meka and Toshia!) to consider school psychology. In my research, I was pleasantly surprised that the work of a school psychologist would not only increase my knowledge and expertise in special education but put me at the tables and in the conversations to give voice and help to serve justice to the students and families who are underserved. I am excited about the new journeys of this position and continuing this great work. 
Fun Fact/Quote: “I’ve come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It’s my personal approach that creates the climate. It’s my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration, it’s is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or de-humanized.” 
What does your average day look like: The joy of this work is that everyday can bring on new adventures. At any given moment I can be found facilitating a social skills group, in session with a student, presenting my findings in an IEP meeting, consulting with a teacher, collaborating with teams in meetings, note taking in a training, being advised in supervision, meeting with families or simply laughing with co-workers as I rush out the door to get to class. The possibilities are endless! 
Why do you do this work: I do this work because it brings me joy and allows me to fulfill my purpose in helping students and families navigate the unfamiliar grounds of special education. 

At the end of October, a month usually accompanied with increased behavioral challenges, I returned to an article that speaks to teachers’ rising frustrations with student behavior: "Is School-Discipline Reform Moving Too Fast?" To be clear, I don’t believe that discipline reform is “moving too fast.” As Dan Losen, the director of UCLA’s Center for Civil Rights Remedies, states in the article: “I don’t think you can go too fast if you are trying to remedy an injustice.” This article helps me consider the best ways to support teachers who may be feeling overwhelmed by student behaviors.
 
Over the past few years, school districts nationwide have drastically reduced the use of suspensions and expulsions. The catalyst to this has been recognizing exclusionary discipline’s pernicious effect on students’ life outcomes, as well as its disproportionate application on students of color, particularly black students. While many teachers believe in the intent behind these reforms, they feel the impact is increased leniency towards disruptive behaviors. They also feel unprepared to support students who previously had been frequently suspended or expelled. As a result, in many school districts, the decrease in suspension rates has meant an increase in teacher turnover. 

Name: Keri Montesino Stewart
Your Position: Unconditional Education Coach @ Grant Elementary
What led you to your current position: My main focus has always been creating systems and supporting schools to create experiences that are fun and meaningful for all stakeholders. Seneca’s focus on MTSS and Unconditional Care aligned perfectly with vision for schools so I jumped at the opportunity to be a UE Coach. This job truly provides a beautiful balance of being able to support students and educators on a individual level to make positive connections but also opportunities to examine the systems critically  to make improvements that have lasting impact for everyone.
Fun Fact/Quote: 
“Chocolate cake heals most, molten chocolate lava cake heals all”
“Teaching is the greatest act of optimism.” (Colleen Wilcox)
“Students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” (Anonymous)
What does your average day look like: The fun part about this job is that the days are never the same. Some days I may be spending time in classrooms supporting students and teachers, other days I may be facilitating team meetings to support school initiatives. I also spend time coordinating and planning interventions and school-wide events to ensure student success. Additionally, I also have the privilege of meeting with teachers and community partners to strategize different ways to support high needs students. There is never a dull moment, except trying to catch up on paperwork 😊.
Why do you do this work: I am really hopeful that any school that is filled with loving and supporting adults who have high expectations for students and develop a love for learning, can change the life trajectory for at-risk students. I believe the connections we make with students and families have positive effects on their self-worth and their dreams for the future. I believe that we have the power to change the world, one student and one school at a time. 

Name: Samantha Adamson​
Your Position: Student Support Assistant @ Rosemary Elementary School in Campbell/San Jose, CA
What led you to your current position: I interned at a non-profit community based organization working in the community with children, youth and families during my final year of undergrad in San Luis Obispo. During this time, I really deepened my passion for working with this population by seeing them in their homes and communities and developing my understanding of the expansive and varying needs of each individual. Upon graduating and returning to the bay area, I knew that I wanted to find a similar organization to work for in order to gain more experience in this field before going back to school to get my Masters. When I found Seneca, I knew immediately that I wanted to work with them because of their emphasis on Unconditional Care--which is also what led me into the Unconditional Education realm rather than continuing in community based work.
Fun Fact/Quote: I went to both elementary and middle school in the same school district that I am now working in--Campbell Union School District!
What does your average day look like: Everyday is SO different. But on the most typical day I arrive to campus, respond to emails, figure out scheduling for the day, and prepare our student's behavior trackers for "Check in Check out". From here, I check in with 2-3 students and push into the classroom with the student that seemed like they might need the most support. I then provide targeted supervision during Kindergarten recess and lunch time for a student who is working on increasing safety. Throughout the remainder of the school day I push into various classrooms to provide behavioral support on a scheduled and as needed basis (again, this changes everyday). I check out with 2-3 students and reflect on where they were successful and where they may have needed more help and also provide whatever incentive they might have earned--this could be a break with a preferred peer or adult, something from our Seneca prize box or simply a walk around the school with a preferred adult. I finish my day with teacher meetings, emails, and mental health notes.
Why do you do this work: I am extremely passionate about providing support to children, youth and families in order for them to access their right to education, regardless of what might be happening at home or behaviors that may come out at school. The earlier we can intervene and provide support to these children and families, the better their chances are of feeling successful in the school environment which is something I believe everyone should experience. I also really want to see a change in our education system where we can have integrated mental and behavioral health services in conjunction with academics in order to provide support to the students who need it to help them access their learning. The more we expand this work and the Unconditional Education model into various school districts and show them that it's both effective and efficient, the more we can make an impact on the larger level.

As you all know, one of our All-In Partnership Project! UE Program Goals for the 2019-2020 school year is #Together: We are embedded into school communities. This means that as partners with schools, we focus on adaptive integration to ensure coherent service delivery for students and efficient processes for staff, thus building trust, relationship, and TRUE partnership. As this goal is one of the pillars of our Unconditional Education Model, it is one that cannot be highlighted enough, and can be pretty easy to achieve 😊.
While reflecting on the meaning of TRUE Partnership, I immediately thought of our partnership with Verde Elementary School in West Contra Costa Unified School District. We are currently in our 4th year of partnership with Verde and it has been an inspiring journey to witness and be a part of. After starting out with just 1 UE Coach, our staff has grown to include 1 UE Coach, 1 Clinician, and 3 Student Support Assistants thanks to a truly blended funding model consisting of school site funds, district home office funds, Medi-Cal funds, and foundation grants. There are many things that made, and continues to make, this partnership so successful. I wanted to highlight a couple tips and share a shining example of a beautiful way the partnership was celebrated.

Alignment and clear expectations

• When the partnership first started, we made sure there was an alignment of values and goals with the home office team and the school site administrators to ensure a strong connection on all levels. This is revisited formally twice a year to hammer out the details of partnership by defining the structure, outlining what the partnership should accomplish, and understanding what constitutes each partner’s domain to help eliminate confusion for both partners. 

Consider partners a part of the team

• One reason we stand out in the services we provide is evident in how we consider the schools we work with as partners and not just “contractors” coming in to provide a service. Instead we embed ourselves into the school communities we work with; we’re teammates! And, as with any good team, clear and well-defined roles should be established in effort to avoid possible confusion or misunderstandings. To make the partnership as valuable as it can be, it should be about learning, growing, benefiting from each other's knowledge and experience while also celebrating one another’s successes.

Give the partnership room to grow

• Remember, we’re not just pooling resources; we’re also combining our abilities to scale and create sustainable systems to build capacity of the other adults on campus. Flexibility and extensibility are key, as extensibility is a vital element in any partnership because both our collective ability to extend resources can mean freedom for staff to innovate new ideas and ways in which they can best support the staff, students and families we are privileged to serve.  A valuable partnership should be capable of sharing resources and adapting over time.

Make honesty and transparency your “watchwords”

• We were able to establish a successful partnership, ensuring it had the ability to grow through honesty and transparency about the services we could provide. That meant maintaining open and frequent communication as well as personal interaction as often as possible.

Our school highlight this week is our newest partnership with Rosemary Elementary in Campbell Unified School District. Our UE partnership with Rosemary was the result of an expansion with Santa Clara County interested in building strong culture and climate and effective systems of support within schools with high needs student populations.