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    Respect for All Week 2011

From February 14th - February 18th, Speaker Quinn and Chancellor Black have urged all NYC public schools to take part in a week long series of events to promote Respect for All in their classrooms. “Respect for All Week” is designed to focus all City schools on the importance of promoting respect for diversity and fostering inclusive learning environments for their students. The Department of Education's “Respect for All” initiative is New York City’s effort to combat bullying and harassment based on ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and other characteristics. Check back at http://council.nyc.gov/rfa for the latest updates on the Respect for All initiative and resources.

List of organizations taking part in Respect for All Week:

  • 18 May Committee
  • ADL NY
  • Ali Forney Center
  • American Jewish Committee
  • Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
  • Asian Americans for Equality
  • ASPIRA of NYSoka Gakkai International - USA
  • Brooklyn Community Pride Center
  • Bronx Pride
  • CACF
  • Camino PR
  • Center for Anti-Violence Education
  • Coalition for Educational Justice
  • Coro New York Leadership Center 
  • Council Forlento
  • Council for Unity
  • ENACT
  • EARS (Effective Alternative in Reconciliation Services)
  • Facing History and Ourselves
  • FIERCE
  • Generation Q
  • Girls Educational and Mentoring Services' (GEMS)
  • Girls for Gender Equity
  • GLSEN
  • HEART
  • The Hetrick-Martin Institute
  • Hispanic Federation
  • Historic House Trust
  • Holocaust Center
  • IlliminArt Productions
  • LGBT Community Center, Yes! Program
  • Live Out Loud
  • Make the Road NYC
  • Morningside Center for Social Responsibility 
  • Muslim Coalition
  • NAACP
  • New York Tolerance Center
  • NYCLU
  • NYQueer
  • Operation Respect
  • Parent Action Committee - New Settlement
  • Peace First New York
  • PFLAG NYC
  • Pride Not Prejudice
  • Project REACH
  • Scenarios USA
  • SGI-USA
  • South Asian Youth Action
  • Staten Island LGBT Center
  • Student Union
  • Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding
  • The Arab-American Family Support Center
  • The ARISE Coalition
  • The Hetrick-Martin Institute
  • The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
  • The Sikh Coalition
  • YouthBridge-NY  / CAUSE-NY

The Respect for All Initiative
City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn announced in October 2009 a major expansion of Respect for All, an anti-bias program that combats bullying and harassment in New York City public schools.  The newly expanded initiative will extend training programs to all elementary school teachers and counselors, provide principals with additional guidance in creating anti-bullying plans, and make creation of a safe and supportive learning environment factor into school evaluations.

In 2007, Speaker Quinn and the City Council first worked with the Mayor’s office and the Department of Education (DOE) to create a bullying prevention program, and help provide students with ways to deal with harassment when it occurs.  While Respect for All has already demonstrated some success, Speaker Quinn met with numerous advocates to look for ways to expand and improve on the program.  Speaker Quinn then worked with both the Mayor and Chancellor to find ways to implement several key improvements.

 “We have a responsibility to provide every student in New York City with a safe and inclusive learning environment,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “Eliminating bullying and harassment in our schools is critical to preventing hate among future generations.  For the past two years, we’ve been working with advocates and community members to expand our ‘Respect for All’ program.  And now, by increasing training opportunities and accountability, we've created the most comprehensive anti-harassment initiative in the nation.” 

Respect for All requires schools to develop annual plans to convey appropriate standards of behavior to students and staff; to track and monitor all bias incidents; to investigate complaints properly; and to take follow-up steps to ensure that schools maintain safe and respectful learning environments.  Last year, the Department of Education added mandated reporting and investigation guidelines to the Respect for All initiative, making New York City a national leader in efforts to combat bullying and harassment based on ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and other factors.

Building on this commitment, this year the City is taking further steps to strengthen the initiative by expanding diversity training among school staff and requiring that more staff attend two-day training sessions. Additionally, for the first time, efforts to combat bullying and harassment will factor into a school’s quality and safety reviews. 

Beginning in 2009:

·        All parent coordinators and all school-designated Respect for All liaisons will be required to attend a two-day training session.

·        A two-day Respect for All training program will be offered to all elementary school teachers and counselors. Middle and high school staff are already offered such trainings.

·        School climate and culture will be added as evaluation criteria in annual Quality Reviews, which factor into principals’ annual performance reviews.

·        Respect for All will be included in the school climate and culture section of on-site comprehensive assessments performed by the Office of School and Youth Development

·        The Department of Education will offer new guidance and support to principals in developing their annual Respect for All plans.

·        Parents will now have the opportunity to review principals’ Respect for All plans.

In order to better support Respect for All plans, schools will now receive a set of guiding principles to ensure that their annual plans are rigorous, comprehensive, and effective. School Support Organizations will also assist schools in drafting their plans and will review them before they are finalized. The Department is also enhancing Respect for All literature to ensure that students know how to report incidents of harassment by school staff as well as their peers.  In addition, the Speaker Quinn and the DOE will be seeking federal funding to develop, pilot, and evaluate new staff trainings, as well as private funding to support development and implementation of new student lesson plans.