A Welcoming School Climate: Creating Spaces for Safety, Inclusion, and Belonging – Event Recap

This week, Possip was proud to host our second webinar in our series of three. We have been examining what our data says about parents need for their children in terms of a strong school climate. This session, “A Welcoming Climate”, focused on the needs students have of social safety and a feeling of love and belonging. 

Session 2 Panelists:

Key Takeaways for a Welcoming School Climate

  • First we revisiting the importance of understanding of Maslow’s Hierarchy. We looked at its application in educational settings, with a spotlight on love, belonging, safety, and security. 
    • This is the second of three sessions viewing Pulse Check data through the lens Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
      • A recap of Session 1 (Foundations of a Strong School Climate: Operational Excellence) can be found here
      • A recap of Session 3 (Empowering Leadership in Schools: Fostering Self-Discovery and Contribution – Apr 4, 11 EST / 12 CST), is here!
  • Next, we dug into the data. The panelists discussed the prevalence and impact of bullying, fighting, and student interactions. Furthermore, they emphasized the significance of these issues as they present in the data at different school levels and types.
    • Watch as Mariana Merritt walks through the national data that speaks to why we might be seeing so many instances of bullying. Comments from parents trend around looking for schools to fulfill their children’s need for connection: 

Children Need Connection

  • Throughout the webinar we explored successful strategies for fostering safety and security in this welcomign school climate. To do this, we looked at how some Possip Partners leverage Possip feedback to inform initiatives aimed at combating bullying and enhancing student relations.
    • Listen as Erica Faulkner speaks to innovative schools rethinking the model of one curricula for all. Instead, she advocates for instruction led by educators who see who children are and how they best learn:

Children Need To Be Seen As Individuals

  • Next, we explored the critical role of love and belonging needs. One of the top parental feedback trends revolves around the importance of teacher communication and professionalism.
    • Shani noted that Possip has developed a self-evaluation tool for school leaders. This will help you determine how well you are communicating and incorporating families into your improvement plans. That tool can be found here. (For a limited time, you can join our membership portal for free with the code FREEMEMBER!)
  • Finally, we presented case studies and actionable strategies from schools. Additionally, we dove into how schools have successfully addressed these needs, supported by Possip’s platform.
    • Check out Shani’s explanation of explaining steps to communicate and invite meaningful input from families and students:

What You Can Do to Foster a Welcoming School Climate

In all, the panel shared reflections and insights from their work with schools. They offered practical solutions and recommendations for improving family engagement and fostering a welcoming school climate.

This event underscored the power of community feedback. It’s vital to strategically communicate to create educational environments where students feel safe, included, and connected so they can move into the top sections of Maslow’s hierarchy.

Watch “Empowering Leadership in Schools: Fostering Self-Discovery and Contribution”, from April 4 here as we discuss the top two tiers of Maslow’s hierarchy and what parents said they need for their students in terms of self-esteem and self-actualization.