The School Safety unit also offers a number of workshops on safety planning, the discipline code, the Chancellor’s Regulations, and other topics. Workshops include:
Violence Prevention Training (VPT) workshops
The UFT School Safety unit offers two-hour Violence Prevention Training workshops focused on how individual staff members can stay safe. The workshops, held virtually and on-site at UFT borough offices in the fall and the spring, satisfy the mandatory requirements for New York State Certification. For further information, call 212-701-9413. Please Note: If you are changing your license, you are required to take the violence prevention workshop for state certification. See Courses and Workshops to register online.
Dignity for All Students (DASA) Training in Harassment, Bullying, Cyberbullying and Discrimination in Schools: Prevention and Intervention
Only teachers and school-related professionals applying for NYS certification are required to take this state mandated six-hour workshop. The goals of this workshop are to:
- Understand the intent components, and operational definitions of the Dignity Act
- Develop sensitivity to the experience of specific student populations
- Understand how school climate and culture have an impact on student achievement and behavior
- Understand bullying, harassment and discrimination, including indicators, early warning signs, prevention and intervention and how to interact with families of victims and aggressors
- Understand diversity and multi-cultural environments and examining your own biases.
This workshop meets the Dignity for All Students Act (DASA) training requirement of the NYS Education Department for state certification. Enrollment is limited to 50 participants. The UFT offers this workshop to UFT members for a $50 fee for pedagogues and $25 fee for paraprofessionals, payable in non-refundable check or money order (made payable to UFT). All fees, payable to the UFT, are NON-REFUNDABLE. Mail-in registration must be received at the UFT headquarters at least two weeks prior to workshop date.
See Courses and Workshops to register online.
Participants are asked to arrive a half-hour before the workshop begins. Please check the New York Teacher for any additional workshops or possible schedule changes. For further information, call 212-701-9413.
Safety assessment and planning
- Department representatives also provide technical assistance and school presentations about school safety and safety planning upon request by your chapter leader.
School safety training topics
- Security in the schools
This training focuses on established procedures that must be followed when a school-related crime or incident occurs. - School safety plans
This training deals with maintaining a safe and secure school environment and the shared responsibility of the entire school community, including school safety, pedagogical, non-pedagogical and custodial personnel, parents and students. - Corporal punishment
This training deals with the prohibition of corporal punishment. It enforces Department of Education Bylaws and includes reporting requirements established under Regulations of the Commissioner §100.2(l)(3)(ii) concerning the use of physical force upon a student for punishment purposes. - Student disciplinary procedures
This training addresses the intervention and discipline procedures for all students. This training also includes how to effectively use the Citywide Standards of Discipline and Intervention Measures (grades K-5 and 6-12). The topics include principal and superintendent suspensions and student removals. - Violence prevention
Focuses on principles of security awareness in and around school as well as violence prevention strategies, which educators can use to defuse potentially violent situations and better handle individuals who may be violence prone.