District climate survey shows strengths on rules and norms; district highlights anonymous reporting and mental-health partnerships

The New Canaan Board of Education received a comprehensive school climate update that showed generally strong results across elementary, middle and family surveys, while identifying social emotional security and social media as areas for continued work.

Dr. Bliss, the districtpresenter of the update, told the board the district used the Comprehensive School Climate Inventory (CSCI) in spring 2024 and compared those results with a CSCI administration in 2022. "School climate is not an afterthought. It's, not a luxury. It truly is the foundation of academic excellence," Dr. Bliss said during the presentation. District staff reported high response rates for the K-8 CSCI: elementary students 94%, middle school students 96%, families 24% and certified staff 96%.

Across K-8 populations the district reported median scores approaching 4.0 on the CSCI's five-point scale, with particularly strong results for safety rules and norms, support for learning, and respect for diversity. Dr. Bliss flagged two consistent areas for improvement: social emotional security and behaviors tied to social media, and noted the survey included a substantial number of "neither agree nor disagree" responses that complicate interpretation.

Dr. Bliss described district actions and supports tied to the findings: school-based climate committees required by state mandate, targeted professional development including restorative practices and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills for staff, student leadership programs such as Start With Hello (a Sandy Hook Promise initiative), and digital citizenship curriculum revisions. "We are getting some anecdotal data from schools saying that they're not seeing quite the same amount of difficulties without the phones," Dr. Bliss said about the district's phone-free schools work.

The presentation also reviewed the Say Something anonymous reporting system, which allows students to submit tips online or through an app. District staff reported training 1,976 students this year and, for the period November 2023 through January 2025, recorded 65 total tips, 13 of which were labeled "life safety" tips that prompted immediate follow-up by central-office staff and, if needed, law enforcement. "I really do believe we've saved lives this year," Dr. Bliss said, describing cases where the system enabled immediate intervention.

Dr. Bliss described community partnerships supporting climate and mental-health work, including Silver Hill Health and Human Services, New Canaan Cares and a regional Fairfield Youth Cannabis Prevention Project. She said Silver Hill's assessment resources had helped the district find counseling services for families, while acknowledging some provider shortages remain.

Board members asked questions about survey selection and longitudinal comparisons; Dr. Bliss said the district chose the CSCI after reviewing several instruments and that changes to the survey instrument by the vendor can complicate direct comparisons over time. The high school used a separate survey tied to its New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) accreditation visit, Dr. Bliss said, and the district chose not to re-survey families twice in the same period.

Next steps described to the board included planning for the next climate survey, revising district policy to reflect recent state legislative changes to the definition of bullying, and continued monitoring of the anonymous reporting data and best practices for increasing student reporting.

Details presented to the board included: CSCI administered 2022 and 2024; high elementary/middle student response rates; families 24% response rate; certified staff 96% response rate; 65 Say Something tips Nov. 2023Jan. 2025 with 13 life-safety tips; 1,976 students trained on Say Something; and plans to review new state legislation affecting bullying policy.