ALTERNATIVE PROGRAMS AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION

WHEREAS, disruptive and violence-prone students require varying degrees of attention and actions ranging from intervention to expulsion; and

WHEREAS, school budgets for instructional delivery are already stretched to their limits, and there is insufficient funding to enact programs to counteract the rising tide of violence and disruption in our schools; and

WHEREAS, successful programs are currently in existence in cities but are not being effectively replicated and are insufficient in number to accommodate the growing need for targeted programs and facilities; and

WHEREAS, school staff lack adequate training and resources needed to deal with incidents of aggression and disruption; and

WHEREAS, students need additional support in order to learn nonviolent methods of conflict resolution; and

WHEREAS, standards of behavior are learned at an early age, prior to a child’s first entering school; and

WHEREAS, many children are entering school with little support from home and with experiences that are based on violent methods of resolving conflict and little understanding of how to function in larger group settings; and

WHEREAS, Goal 1 of Goals 2000: Educate America Act states, "All children in America will start school ready to learn":

RESOLVED, that the AFT support recent federal legislative initiatives represented by the 1993 Safe Schools Act that provide federal funding incentives for the development of local school safety and violence prevention programs; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT support the dissemination of programs and curriculum that have been found to be effective in teaching peaceful methods of conflict resolution, peer mediation and individual responsibility (self-discipline); and

RESOLVED, that the AFT support the development, implementation and funding by school districts for training programs that enable school staff to maintain safe and orderly learning environments; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT support a focus on early childhood programs that assist children in developing an understanding of self-discipline and on how to get along with peers and adults in a group setting; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT support the establishment and maintenance of alternative educational settings including residential programs for students who are removed from regular classroom environments.