Improving Georgia’s Public Education Climate

Georgia Education Climate Coalition, Georgia Appleseed, Southern Education Foundation | Georgia | Education | gaappleseed.org + pbis.org

Education ecosystems impact learning, engagement, and student success.

“PBIS isn’t a curriculum you purchase or something you learn during a one-day professional development training. It is a commitment to addressing student behavior through systems change. When implemented well, students achieve improved social and academic outcomes, schools experience reduced exclusionary discipline practices, and school personnel feel more effective,” according to PBIS.org.

THE CHALLENGE

The Georgia Education Climate Coalition (GECC), a coalition of professional agencies, advocates, educators, schools, and school districts, was formed to improve the school climate in Georgia. As the weather metaphor implies, PBIS considers a school as an ecosystem composed of distinctive climates through which students pass each day: for example, the climate of a playground is different from the climate of a classroom; a lunchroom climate is different that of a hallway; a school bus climate is different from that of an AP classroom. PBIS helps integrate the educational climates into a coherent, flexible system that has improved student social and academic outcomes across the nation. This campaign seeks to demonstrate the value of PBIS and clearly define the challenges with any school’s education ecosystem.

THE OUTCOME

The Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support (PBIS) framework is now in use at more than 1,200 Georgia public schools, an increase of 100% in participants since the launch of the campaign.

Education ecosystems impact learning, engagement, and student success.

TEAM

Brian Merwin
Doug Grimmett
Emma Weldon
Ingrid Sibley
Kathi Roberts
Matt Porter
Nakita Pope
Neil Fried
Tess Perez
Peyton Bowen
Sarah Lawrence
Symone Walker

The Good Thinking team created a branded public information campaign with energy and enthusiasm, which could expand as needed.

The campaign utilizes stock images (affordable to any school) and applied it to a wide variety of print and digital assets, including buttons, stickers, social media, posters, fence banners, lawn signs, and more. The campaign was designed so that participating schools (or school districts) could affordably customize it with their own school names, mascots, and messages.

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Sharon Hill
Executive Director (retired), Georgia Appleseed
GECC Coalition Partner

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