Education Reform

Goal: Strengthen site-based educational reform through systematic analysis of school and community risk and protective factors. Based on this research, implement intervention programs at participating schools.

To strengthen existing site-based education reform, Seattle Public Schools will implement the Communities That Care (CTC) operating system. CTC is a complete prevention planning system for healthy communities. The CTC operating system provides a framework to help communities develop an integrated approach to positive youth development and the prevention of problem behaviors including substance abuse, academic failure, unplanned pregnancy, school dropout, and violence. The CTC model is based on Prevention Science – a theory of social development that aims to identify and reduce risk factors and problem behaviors among young people will simultaneously promoting protective factors that lead to productive, fulfilling lives. Just as we know that certain behaviors affect a person’s physical health, there are also factors that affect the likelihood that a child will grow into a healthy, productive adult.

In Seattle, 26 secondary schools are implementing CTC. Each school has identified a school-community board called the CTC Team. The CTC Teams include parents, students school staff, social service agency staff, and community volunteers. CTC Teams participate in 4 training sessions over a two-year period. As they are trained, CTC teams will complete the 4 steps below to implement the operating system in their school-community. All CTC staff, materials, and trainings are funded by a Safe Schools/Healthy Students grant from the United States Departments Education, Health & Human Services, and Justice.

“Communities That Care is not a program, but rather an operating system that helps schools and communities match the right policies, programs, and actions to the specific unique needs of their own children.” -J. David Hawkins, Ph.D., CTC Creator

Step 1 – Needs Assessment
Collect and analyze school-specific data from the CTC Youth Survey administered to 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders in April/May 2002. The CTC Youth Survey measures the risk and protective factors that impact positive youth development.

Step 2 – Determine Priorities/Set Goals & Outcomes
Based on data from their school’s students, CTC teams determine priorities for reducing risk and enhancing protective factors on which to focus efforts and resources. Each school team identifies current community and school resources that address these priority risk and protective factors for their students. They will also identify any gaps to be filled in existing resources. Goals and outcomes are determined for each of the selected priorities.

Step 3 – Implement Research Proven Programs
Schools apply for mini-grants and mobilize community resources to implement effective prevention interventions and strategies to reduce prioritized risk factors and enhance prioritized protective factors.

Step 4 – Evaluation
CTC Teams develop an education plan to measure whether or not the desired outcomes are being achieved. In 2004, the CTC Youth Survey will be administered for a second time to all 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders to formally document changes in risk and protective factors as a result of programs that have been implemented.

A School Community Coordinator will be hired to conduct a training needs assessment and coordinate training and adult education in conjunction with Communities That Care. Training issues to be addressed will include parent education for transitional grades, school violence, drug/alcohol abuse, disproportionality, truancy, risk and protective factors, and CTC programs. Trainings will target school staff, parents, SIT and 504 teams, as well as community partners.

For more information about CTC, visit the CTC website.