“After we added the Playworks training, our suspensions dropped”

“We really liked the program, but realized we weren’t going to have long term money to sustain direct service. So we made a strategic decision to do it on our own with training…My first year, here we lost 178 total suspension days from discipline issues. That’s like a kid a day lost to suspension all year. The next year through addressing the issue with staff, it dropped to 118. But last year, after we added the Playworks training, our suspensions dropped to around 44…I’d rather go out and be present outside, active and involved spending 15 minutes playing every day instead of spending 30-45 minutes suspending a kid. Now, part of my job is to play with kids and teach them how to play instead of laying down the law. And this works for us. We wouldn’t be doing it if it didn’t.”

Wilson and a core of around a dozen teachers and playground staff signed up for Playworks Pro’s Recess 360 program, which consisted of monthly trainings as well as regular consultation services to help ensure the program was most effectively implemented. See full story here.