Safe School Ambassadors
What is Safe School Ambassadors?
Safe School Ambassadors is an international program that originated in Palm Beach County in December, 2000. In it, students who represent the various sub-groups of a school campus are identified, recruited, and trained to intervene when they encounter mistreatment on their campuses. Adult staff members recommend students who are considered social opinion leaders within their sub-groups. Recommended candidates possess three characteristics: They are strong enough to speak up in their sub-groups even if their friends do not agree with them; they are out-going enough to initiate contact with people they do not know well and they exhibit characteristics of compassion. Students attend an initial training event with their adult advisors and are supported via follow-up meetings conducted by campus staff. These meetings last about 30 minutes, are scheduled approximately every three weeks, and are conducted during non-academic time.
What grade levels participate in Safe School Ambassadors?
Training is customized for elementary, middle, and high school students.
What do Safe School Ambassadors learn during training?
Ambassadors learn to identify five different forms of common mistreatment, including deliberate exclusion, put-downs, intimidation, physical mistreatment, and acts against groups (e.g. racism, xenophobia, homophobia). They are trained in diplomatic communication skills, including balancing, support, reasoning, directing, distracting, active listening, and strategies for getting help.
Is there a cost for training?
Due to a unique agreement with Community Matters, the national provider of Safe School Ambassadors training, Palm Beach County schools can receive training by Rick Lewis from the Department of Safe Schools at no cost. Elsewhere, the training costs approximately $5000 per school.
The training takes place at the school site, and schools are asked to provide substitutes for the staff members who will attend training with the Safe School Ambassadors. In some places, administration supplies refreshments for the training and for follow-up meetings.
Contact Information
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Rick LewisTraining Coordinator
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