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Navigating Get-Tough and Support-Oriented Philosophies for Improving School Safety: Insights from School Administrators and School Safety Staff

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Abstract

Schools in the United States are increasingly faced with the challenge of navigating two seemingly contradictory approaches to school safety. On the one hand, they attempt to make schools safer by employing get-tough, punishment-oriented policies. On the other hand, schools promote support-oriented policies that seek to address the root causes of students’ behavioral issues. Despite considerable advances in research on school safety, little is known about how schools balance the implementation of these two approaches. To address this research gap, we present findings from interviews with school principals, assistant principals, discipline coordinators, police, and district leaders to illustrate how schools navigate the implementation of these competing school safety philosophies. Implications for theory, research, and policy are discussed.

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Notes

  1. The possibility of other school-based differences was examined; with the exception of the difference reported here, no consistent evidence of variations in results across schools emerged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Florida State University, Eppes Hall, 112 South Copeland Street, Tallahassee, FL, 32306, USA

    Nicole L. Collier, Samantha J. Brown, George B. Pesta, Daniel P. Mears & Sonja E. Siennick

  2. School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State University, 411 North Central Avenue, Suite 600, Phoenix, AZ, 85004, USA

    Andrea N. Montes

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  1. Nicole L. Collier
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Correspondence to Nicole L. Collier.

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Partial support for developing this paper comes from a National Institute of Justice grant (#2014-CK-BX-0018). Points of view in this paper are those of the authors and do not represent the official positions or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice or the school district where the study occurred.

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Collier, N.L., Brown, S.J., Montes, A.N. et al. Navigating Get-Tough and Support-Oriented Philosophies for Improving School Safety: Insights from School Administrators and School Safety Staff. Am J Crim Just 44, 705–726 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-018-9462-6

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