Conditions of children: A pillar of CSBA’s Policy Platform
Summer 2013
CSBA’s Delegate Assembly updated the association’s Policy Platform—the bedrock statement that guides all of the association’s work—when it met in Sacramento recently.
Following is an excerpt from the introductory material that explains the overall Platform’s purpose, followed by the full text of the updated Conditions of Children section as approved by the delegates.
CSBA’s Policy Platform provides a broad policy framework for implementing the association’s mission to set the agenda for the public schools and students of California. It guides the association in its policy and political leadership activities, as well as in its partnerships, research efforts, and working with the media and the public.
CSBA provides policy and political leadership on critical issues through a variety of programs and special projects … All these efforts are guided by the framework set forth in this platform. … Policy discussions about educational improvement must stay focused on meeting the needs of students. The ultimate goal must be to prepare all students to meet the challenges of the 21st century by addressing the changing needs of California’s students.
Pillar 3: Improve conditions of children
Preamble
The primary responsibility of public schools is to educate students. The ability of children to attend school, to be engaged and learning in the classroom and to achieve academic success is significantly affected by conditions in their daily lives. The physical, mental and emotional health of each child, the social and economic obstacles they and their families may face, and the environments in which they live all impact a child’s ability to learn. All children need access to appropriate support services.
To improve the conditions of children, CSBA will pursue three education policy levers.
- Integrated student services
- Safe and supportive school environments
- Community engagement
Integrated student services
Addressing the conditions that impact students is not the sole responsibility of schools. The needs of all students must be identified and comprehensively addressed through the coordinated and collective efforts of schools and other agencies, institutions and organizations, each held to high standards of accountability.
1.1 Collaboration & Accountability: Partnerships and collaboration among all public and private agencies, businesses and community organizations should eliminate barriers to sharing appropriate data and increase flexibility in the coordination of funds to simplify access to education, health and support services for children. Responsibility for meeting the needs of all students should be shared across agencies, organizations, communities and schools. All entities providing integrated services to students should hold each other mutually accountable.
1.2 Prevention, intervention and support for students: Schools and communities should provide developmentally appropriate programs that lead to early success in school. Schools should identify student needs and provide services and supports that address the barriers students face to attending, engaging, learning and achieving in school. Appropriate and effective solutions should be developed for students whose needs are not met in regular education programs.
Safe and supportive school environments
Effective teaching and learning only occurs when students and staff are healthy and feel safe, supported and connected.
2.1 Safe Schools: A positive school environment identifies and addresses the root causes of concerns and reinforces nonviolent solutions to problems and respect for all students and staff. Schools must implement fair and effective practices for student discipline, safe and appropriate technology and media resources, appropriate emergency response and communication plans. Schools must protect confidential student information.
2.2 Healthy Students: Schools must provide coordinated programs and support that promote student wellness, including health, fitness, disease prevention, and nutrition.
Engagement of and support for family and community to improve conditions of children
The home and community environment in which children live influences their ability to learn and thrive. Community outreach, support and partnering with families are critical strategies for improving the conditions of children.
3.1 Community Outreach: Schools should initiate outreach for community-based support for meeting the physical, emotional and mental health needs of all children.
3.2 Partnering with Families: Schools should promote the active involvement of families in supporting the physical, emotional and mental health of children as critical to fostering their success in school and life.
The 4 pillars
CSBA’s Policy Platform was previously organized into eight Critical Issue areas:
- Conditions of Children
- Curriculum and Instruction
- Diversity of Students
- Facilities
- Funding and Finance
- Governance and Structure
- Professional Standards
- Program and Fiscal Accountability
The new Platform seeks to faithfully capture the larger principles in four overarching “policy pillars,” as this excerpt explains:
CSBA has identified four overarching policy pillars that we believe will lead to the outcome we all want for California’s children: graduates prepared for post-high school success in college and the workforce with the skills to be lifelong learners and effective, contributing members of society.
1. Strengthen local governance
California K-12 schools are public institutions that belong to the communities they serve. Local boards must have authority and flexibility consistent with their responsibilities to ensure student achievement for all students and the long-term fiscal stability of the schools.
2. Secure fair funding
K-12 public school funding in the state of California must be sufficient for high-quality teaching and learning for all students in every school. The funding must be guaranteed, stable and equitable.
3. Improve conditions of children
Boards realize that poor nutrition, physical and mental health; a lack of support for learning; unsafe school environments, and lack of access to community resources prevent students from reaching their maximum educational potential, and must establish policies and practices to help their students overcome these barriers.
4. Ensure achievement for all
School boards and districts must provide all students high quality teaching and learning driven by curricula for post-high school success; research-based instruction; timely assessments that accurately measure student performance, and strong professional teacher development.
Improving the outcomes for K-12 education in California is a complex challenge. The emerging research and documented success of the collective impact achieved by mobilizing multiple organizations to collaborate to find solutions for communities is compelling, and CSBA believes this must be a key strategy for meeting this challenge. No one agency can solve this problem alone, and CSBA is dedicated to convening the conversations and sustaining collaborations at every level that will bring our vision to fruition—children unbounded by circumstance.