Love Our (Civility) Squad!

Guest Correspondence

These days, we hear frequent pleas for a “return to civility.” Amid 24/7 hyperpartisan politics, trending extremism, and online echo chambers, we seem to have lost the ability to communicate with others who don’t hold our same viewpoint—to disagree without being disagreeable. Just about any issue can quickly morph into a “life or death” debate.

While we can pine for simpler times, we must remember that our children are in their formative years. Our current moment, with its cyber-bullies, Twitter trolls and “fake news,” is their ground zero for developing the values and behaviors that will shape their civic lives. There seem to be fewer role models in whom our kids can see the positive results of bipartisanship and compromise. That’s why I’m so excited about the comprehensive commitment to civility that the Sarasota County school district announced last week.

Sarasota County Schools declared that civility is the gold standard for communicating across the entire school community, now and into the future. From teachers and students in the classroom, to staff members in transportation and food services, to administrators at The Landings, everyone will be given the tools and inspiration to put positivity first.

The groundwork for this ambitious campaign is “The Civility Squad,” a memorable cast of characters created by talented Ringling College students last year for Gulf Coast’s reimagined Because It Matters initiative. Because It Matters is a regional effort to improve civil discourse, increase civic engagement and build social capital by encouraging people to communicate in more respectful and effective ways. Through a variety of media, The Civility Squad promotes positive and civil actions such as respecting others, making a difference, listening and saying thank you. And the school district is taking those messages and empowering everyone to run with them.

According to Student Services Supervisor Deb Giacolone, who spearheads the district’s campaign, civility will become “our way of work” at Sarasota County Schools. The principles of civility and the characters of The Civility Squad will be incorporated into schoolwide Positive Behavior Intervention and Support plans. Each month of the school year, the district will focus on a different “key to civility”—a simple behavior that can profoundly impact how we treat one another—integrating it into classrooms, cafeterias, buses and district offices. There also will be plenty of engaging activities for students, and even some friendly competition, as well as opportunities to extend the message to their families.

The initiative supports the belief that all students should be able to come to a safe, positive and civil school every day. And it’s deeper than a mere “politeness” campaign. Because It Matters is rooted in the documented brain science of human connections and the biological implications of our interpersonal relationships. As we’ve learned from experts like Daniel Goleman, emotions are contagious, and our daily interactions literally affect our cells, down to our genes. (Brush up on your Goleman for an eye-opening reminder of where we get phrases like “that makes my blood boil.”)

For Sarasota County Schools, nurturing civility on such a scale helps to serve some big, measurable objectives: decreasing dropout rates, suspensions and discipline infractions while increasing student attendance, relationships and achievement, so that every student can graduate college or career-ready—the ultimate goal. “A positive climate and a culture that promotes civility are the foundation for the highest levels of academic achievement,” according to Giacolone.

The Civility Squad’s slogan is “saving our community one good deed at a time.” It’s starting in our school district. I hope you will join in this movement too. Because it matters.

Dr. Mark S. Pritchett is president/CEO of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.

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