Dr. Scott Poland Nova Southeastern University spoland@nova

1. Safeguarding Our Youth and Building Success and Resiliency: Lessons from the front lines of school crises Dr. Scott Poland Nova Southeastern University spoland@nova.edu

2. Would this student be bullied in a middle school? • Has an extensive psychological history • Walks funny and speaks with a lisp • Has a bad skin condition on his face • Described as pale and frail • Identifies as gay • Identifies as Buddhist

3. Reality of Bullying Bullying Facts from U.S. Department of Education Website: • Bullying peaks in middle childhood • Studies show 15 to 25% of students are being bullied with some frequency • Most common forms are being made fun of, being the subject of rumors, being pushed, shoved, kicked, tripped or spit on • Only 1/3 of the victims told an adult

4. Cyberbullying Messages can be posted anonymously 24 hours a day and can reach students even when alone Messages can be very difficult to trace and to delete Messages and posts may be especially nasty and may be viewed and commented on by many others Schools need internet citizenship presentations and prompt investigation of cyberbullying as it effects learning In the Screen Age parents need to take charge of technology and increase supervision Technology is a privilege not a right!

5. What are the leading causes of death for children?Where are our prevention programs? • #1 Accidents • #2 Suicide for teens • #3 Homicide

6. Caplan’s Model of Crisis Intervention • Primary prevention to stop the crisis from happening • Secondary intervention steps taken in the immediate aftermath to reduce the traumatic affect • Tertiary intervention which is long term follow up assistance for those who need it • Circles of vulnerability • 60-20-20 rule

7. 2015 National YRBS Results Surveyed 15,000 H.S students and in the last year 17.7% considered suicide (increase from 2013) 14.7% made a suicide plan (increase) 8.6% made an attempt (increase) Data released in 2016 by the CDC shows suicides at highest number in last 30 years with increases in adolescent suicide rates especially for girls Many concerns about Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why

8. SPRC Brief: Suicide and Bullying www.sprc.org Both victims and perpetrators are at higher risk than peers and a strong association exists between bullying and suicide Personal characteristics such as internalizing problems; low self-esteem; and low assertiveness increase the risk of being bullied and these factors are also associated with risk for suicide It is difficult to control all the risk factors to determine if being bullied was a proximal cause to a youth suicide

9. Primary Resiliency Factors: • Caring and support of others • Positive view of self • Skills in communication, planning, and problem solving • Capacity to manage strong emotions

10. Ways to Build Resiliency: • Make connections • Take care of yourself and think positively • Accept change • Set realistic goals and take action • Look for self-discovery opportunities • Stay flexible and accept help

11. Resiliency and Schools • The 4th R is relationships • NIMH finding on adolescents and success • Academic pressures (Palo Alto Gunn H.S. zero hour example) Save the 2008! • Parental expectations and pressures on adolescents • Upstream and mental health focus needed • Support for LGBT students lacking in many schools

12. State School Plans by Scott and Donna Poland Texas Suicide Safer School Plan (2015) available at: www.texassuicideprevention.org Montana CAST-S Crisis Action School Toolkit-Suicide (2017) available at: www.namimt.org and www.bigskyaacap.org

13. Student Involvement Is Key • Student survey input is needed especially about bullying and cyberbullying to determine extent of the problem. • Teach all students digital citizenship and begin in early grades. • Common sense media has digital citizenship for all grade levels www.commonsensemedia.org • Gain a commitment through anti-bullying pledges • Establish a means for anonymous reporting.

14. Presentations for Parents • Raising children in challenging times • Importance of their involvement • Taking charge of the 4 cabinets in their home • Separating typical teenage moodiness from depression • Collaborating with schools and follow through on needed treatment for their child

15. Tips For Parents • Suggest no screens in cars or bedrooms. • Don’t be in a hurry for your child to have a smartphone or to drive. • Model balancing screen time. • Take charge of technology as it is a privilege not a right! • Create technology free times and develop a technology contract with input from your child.

16. N.S.S.I. • Incidence of non suicidal self-injury • Motivation/Coping strategy • Relationship to Suicide • Coulter v. Washington Township NJ • Protocols/procedures needed • Treatment • Video on NSSI I made for state of FL available at www.nova.edu/suicideprevention

17. School Violence • 2016-17 school year there were 14 shootings at school resulting in death or injury www.everytown.org • Total number of K-12 schools in U.S is 129,189 • Thoughts on the ALICE school safety program • My recommendation for conducting school violence drills • Every school needs a threat assessment team • Student need a way to report threats anonymously

18. School Safety Examples • Create safety task force and include students • Survey staff and students • Teach students to deescalate fights • Use student safety and anti-bullying pledges • Floor plan exercise • Sidney, NY example • CFISD The Force

19. PROTECTIVE FACTORS World Health Organization • Family cohesion and stability • Coping and problem solving skills • Positive self worth and impulse control • Positive connections to school and extracurricular participation • Successful academically

20. PROTECTIVE FACTORS • Good relationships with other youth • Seeks adult help when needed • Lack of access to suicidal means • Access to mental health care • Religiosity • School environment that encourages help seeking and promotes health

21. Carnegie Foundation Recommendations • Three or more significant adults needed in every child's life besides their parents • A sense of safety, security and belonging needed in their home, school and community • Participation in organized activities needed • Volunteer work needed for adolescents

22. Best Practices: Final Thoughts • Provide training on best practices for school safety, bullying and suicide prevention • Increase staff supervision in areas where bullying occurs the most and take immediate action to stop bullying • Survey students to find out the extent of the problems • Do not hesitate to ask students involved in bullying about suicide • Help parents take charge of the 4 cabinets in their home and to understand the difference between teenage moodiness and depression

23. Best Practices: Final Thoughts • Increase all students’ connections to their school • Develop policies and procedures for bullying and suicide prevention and recognize the association www.sprc.org • Develop plans for N.S.S.I. and excellent guidelines for schools are at the Cornell Self-Injury Center • Know the real statistics on school violence • Recognize school safety is an inside job and include students in safety planning • Collaborate an plan with local police and conduct safety audits

24. Suicide in schools (2015) Erbacher, Singer & Poland: Routledge www.nova.edu/suicideprevention spoland@nova.edu Prevention Is Everyone’s Responsibility