By Joanna Geller, PhD and Benjamin Fisher, PhD
Introduction
This brief report highlights key similarities and differences between staff and parent survey findings from school years 2020-21 and 2021-22. The full data can be found in the Appendix. All of the 61 schools that belonged to the Family-Friendly Schools (FFS) Learning Network were eligible to participate in the survey, which was available to all school staff and families in spring 2022. The total number of schools with at least one survey respondent was 57. 1,185 staff completed the survey, and 2,616 parents completed the survey. The median number of parents participating per school was 38, and the median number of staff participating per school was 18.
Important Considerations
- There were 23 additional schools that participated in the survey in 2021-22. Thus, the sample of schools is not the same. However, we conducted the same analyses with only the schools that participated in the survey both years and the results were substantively identical.
- The sample of individuals within schools who completed the survey was different, given new staff and families across school years.
- Many of the schools participating in the survey in 2020-21 were still operating remotely or in hybrid format for much of that school year, while schools were more fully open in person for 2021-22. This context likely affected results in substantive ways.
Benjamin W. Fisher PhD., is an Assistant Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice at
Florida State University. His research is on school criminalization, with a particular focus on
issues of racial equity in school safety, security, and discipline.