Resolution No. 161-12A2, In Support of Staff Training, Curriculum and Services to Meet the Needs of SFUSD Students with Incarcerated Parents.pdf (157 KB)
Second Reading
Subject: Resolution No. 161-12A2
In Support of Staff Training, Curriculum and Services to Meet the Needs
of SFUSD Students with Incarcerated Parents
– Commissioners Matt Haney and Shamann Walton
WHEREAS: 2.7 million children currently have a parent in prison or jail nationwide,
and over 7 million children have a parent that is under some form of correctional
supervision; and
WHEREAS: Since 1991, the population of minor children with at least one incarcerated
parent has increased by 80%; and
WHEREAS: According to the 2011 DCYF Community Needs Assessment, 17,993
children and youth were estimated to have had a parent who spent time in either county
jail or state prison in 2010, and this number does not include youth and children who had
a parent that was incarcerated at any time during their childhood, and does not include
transitional age youth; and
WHEREAS: One in nine African American children nationwide has an incarcerated
parent, compared to one in 28 Latino children and one in 57 white children; and
WHEREAS: According to the Center for Youth Wellness’ Kaiser Research Study,
parental incarceration is one of 10 Adverse Childhood Experiences, which are traumas
that can have a profound effect on a child’s developing brain and body with lasting
impacts on a person’s health throughout his/her lifespan; and
WHEREAS: A number of studies suggest that the effects of parental arrest and
incarceration on a child’s development are profound. Children may suffer from: trauma,
anxiety, shame, guilt, sadness, withdrawal, low self-esteem, decline in school
performance, truancy, use of drugs or alcohol, aggression, depression, difficulty in
sleeping, and/or concentration problems; and
WHEREAS: Starting from the time a parent is taken into custody, children may be
traumatized by witnessing their parent’s arrest, separation from them, and/or from
reuniting with them; and
WHEREAS: Children with incarcerated parents may face a wide range of challenges,
and very few services specifically designed to support youth with this unique but
widespread experience. Some of the challenges include having to move and change
schools often, and a lack of stability and consistency; and
WHEREAS: The maintenance of family ties during incarceration is one possible means
of lessening the negative impact of incarceration on families and children. Most
incarcerated parents want to maintain relationships with their children, including with
their education; and
Subject: Resolution No. 16£-12A2
In Support of Staff Training, Curriculum and Services to Meet the Needs of SFUSD Students with
Incarcerated Parents – Commissioners Matt Haney and Shamann Walton
WHEREAS: Children with incarcerated parents face challenges in maintaining
relationships with their incarcerated parents due to a lack of consistency in
communication through phone calls, letters, and visits; and
WHEREAS: In 2003 the San Francisco Children of Incarcerated Parents Partnership
(SFCIPP) published the Children of Incarcerated Parents Bill of Rights, which includes,
among others, a right to not be judged, blamed or labeled because of my parent’s
incarceration, a right to support as I struggle with my parent’s incarceration, and the right
to a lifelong relationship with my parent; and
WHEREAS: Project WHAT!, a youth-led program for teens with incarcerated parents,
completed a survey of over 100 San Francisco youth between the ages of 12 and 25 years
old. When asked what kind of support would have been helpful to you during your
parent’s incarceration, 25% said “Someone to talk to at school,” 24% said a “Peer support
group,” and 33% said “Therapy or counseling;” and
WHEREAS: Children with incarcerated parents often times feel stigmatized and
isolated at schools, which can be exacerbated by a lack of understanding and sensitivity
to the experiences and needs of the children of incarcerated parents by school staff and
peers; and
WHEREAS: School counselors, social workers, and wellness staff are in a unique
position to provide support to the children of incarcerated parents and their families; and
WHEREAS: The only SFUSD school based program specifically for children with
incarcerated parents in the 2015-2016 school year is the ROOTS theater program at the
Academy of Arts and Sciences High School, a program that is in its second year at this
site; and
WHEREAS: Children with incarcerated parents exhibit tremendous resilience and
strength, and should be empowered and supported to speak about their experiences and
needs, and shape the policies and programs that impact their lives; and
WHEREAS: In 2014-2015, for the first year, all middle and high school counselors and
head counselors were trained by youth and leaders of Project WHAT! The goals of the
training were for staff to obtain an increased understanding of how many children are
impacted by parental incarceration and what challenges they face in school and in life,
strategic and policy recommendations, and written resources to share with students; and
WHEREAS: There are age appropriate readings and curriculum at all grade levels
available that can help to de-stigmatize parental incarceration and help children cope with
the incarceration of a loved one; and
WHEREAS: Popular culture, including TV shows such as Empire and Orange is the
New Black, can help young people process and cope with their experiences and can also
be made available as teaching tools for educators; and
Subject: Resolution No. 161-12A2
In Support of Staff Training, Curriculum and Services to Meet the Needs of SFUSD Students with
Incarcerated Parents – Commissioners Matt Haney and Shamann Walton
WHEREAS: Sesame Street developed “Little Children, Big Challenges: Incarceration,”
which includes free multimedia, bilingual materials targeting young children of
incarcerated parents, their families and caregivers, and the range of other professionals
who interact with these children; and
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That the Board of Education requests that the
Superintendent of Schools will work with staff and continue to provide trainings for
school counselors, social workers, nurses, wellness center staff, school resource officers,
and other school staff on an annual basis on the needs and experiences of students with
incarcerated parents; these trainings, wherever possible, should involve children with
incarcerated parents who can speak to their experiences; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED: SFUSD will provide deeper support and school wide
trainings to schools where there may be a higher concentration of children with
incarcerated parents; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: SFUSD will consolidate, and integrate curriculum
relating to children with incarcerated parents, the impacts of incarceration more broadly,
into the appropriate courses and grade levels, and make such curriculum available to
schools and school libraries. This curriculum should be developed in consultation with
organizations that work directly with children with incarcerated parents; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED: SFUSD will distribute informational and educational
resources to teachers, counselors and school staff about how to support children with
incarcerated parents; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: SFUSD will explore and pursue specific
programming and services for children with incarcerated parents; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED: SFUSD will research and provide support in best
practices for counselors, teachers and school staff to maintain communication with the
parents of incarcerated children, which may include written and verbal communication
and materials, where in the best interest of the child and as permissible by law; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: SFUSD will identify and assign a Staff Liaison who
is available for collaboration and cooperation with “One Family,” the parent education
and case management program in the San Francisco County Jail; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED: SFUSD will seek to add questions specifically about
incarceration and parental incarceration, including to the Youth Behavior Risk Survey,
which will help SFUSD understand the experiences and needs of children with
incarcerated parents. All survey data will remain confidential and anonymous.
Please Note:
> Referred by order of the Chair on 1/12/16 to the Curriculum and Program and Budget and Business Services
Committees.
> Taken up by the Curriculum and Program Committee on 2/1/16, Forwarded to the Board with a positive
recommendation by general consent of the Committee.
> Taken up by the Budget and Business Services Committee on 3/2/16. Forwarded to the Board with a positive
recommendation by general consent of the Committee.
1/12/16
3/8/16