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"Safe Schools/Healthy Students"
Springfield, Oregon
| Partners: | Springfield School District 19 Lane County Health and Human Services Department, Mental Health Division City of Springfield Police Department | |
Eugene-Springfield-Bethel is the urban core of Lane County, Oregon, an area roughly the size of Connecticut. Even though the metropolitan area is separated into three school districts and two municipalities, it is effectively one city. Approximately 90% of Springfield School District's 11,380 students are white, 5% are Hispanic, 2% are either African-American or Asian Pacific Islander, and 1% are American Indian. In the Bethel School District, which includes 5,246 students, the population is 90% white, 5% Hispanic, and 2% either American Indian or Asian Pacific Islander. The Eugene School District, which includes 18,697 students, is 87% white, 5% Hispanic, 4% Asian Pacific Islander, and 2% either African-American or American Indian. Alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use by youth is a persistent problem in Lane County, as is juvenile problem behavior. Risk factors include child abuse and neglect, poor academic performance, and economic deprivation. More than 14% of families with children under 18 are below the poverty line. The percentages of students on free/reduced lunch are near 27% in Eugene, 36% in Bethel, and 33% in Springfield. In the spring of 1998, Springfield was the site of tragic events in which a student shot and killed fellow students and his parents.
In addition to the core partners, the Eugene-Bethel-Springfield Consortium includes Eugene District 4J, Bethel School District 52, the City of Eugene Police Department, the Lane County Department of Youth Services, and the Lane County Public Safety Coordinating Council as well as its administrative host??Lane Council of Governments.
As a strong early childhood system is already in place, the consortium will seek to address existing gaps. The Effective Behavioral Support (EBS), a successful drug and violence prevention and early intervention system that is already in place at some schools, will be expanded. The consortium will ensure that the EBS system includes early prevention services to promote mental health. It will make schools a major partner and an access point for mental health services and ensure that services are delivered at schools. Other activities will include increasing partnerships with law enforcement, implementing mentoring programs, addressing behavioral issues among high risk youth, and addressing family violence. The consortium will continue to periodically review safe school policies and address any gaps. To increase school safety, the Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) analyses of schools will be completed. Additional video cameras will also be purchased for schools.
The Lane Council of Governments (LCOG), a regional planning organization with expertise in community safety and justice planning and evaluation, will coordinate the evaluation of this project.
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[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]