For years, learning and working at Pittsburgh Arlington PreK-8 school was overwhelming.<\/p>\n
In the 2024-25 school year, said Principal Crystal Caldwell, more than 130 fights were recorded at the school, located in the city\u2019s southern neighborhoods near Mt. Oliver. More than half of Arlington\u2019s roughly 360 students were considered chronically absent. Caldwell was the building\u2019s fourth principal in as many years.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a lot \u2014 a lot of fights, a lot of angry parents,\u201d said Imari Payne-Ford, a parent of two children at Arlington and who\u2019s also worked to provide community services to families in need at the school for the past five years.<\/p>\n
Long marred by instability and violence, Arlington\u2019s leaders last school year decided to place an emphasis on instilling a positive school culture, focused on belonging.<\/p>\n
With the help of staff, families and community resources, fighting incidents at Arlington were reduced to 10 last year. And morale and trust in the school has taken a 180-degree turn, Caldwell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have more active families now,\u201d Payne-Ford said. \u201cIt was hard to get families to trust us. It\u2019s impactful, the shift in culture at Arlington. It\u2019s rewarding, seeing the bottom; and now seeing more smiles and families.\u201d<\/p>\n
Culture shift<\/p>\n
Capitalizing on last year\u2019s severe reduction in violence, and continuing the momentum for the school year that starts Monday, is a top priority for Caldwell.<\/p>\n
\u201cArlington\u2019s history has been a school of violence, and \u2018Oh, don\u2019t send your kid there.\u2019 We\u2019re trying to help people realize, \u2018Oh, you should send your kid here,\u2019 \u201d she said. \u201cBeing able to feel safe, heard and valued is the first step in strengthening education.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t learn if there\u2019s chaos in your space, and having the culture be one of love and learning, instead of violence, has helped us so much.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last year Caldwell, assistant principal Michael Dreger and support staff members began walking the halls every morning to talk about safety and coordinate student support resources. Dubbing it the \u201csafety huddle,\u201d Caldwell believes the consistent communication has contributed to the reduction in school violence.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been able to team up and talk about any conflicts in the school,\u201d said Alexa Marotta, a restorative practice project assistant. \u201cCommunication blossomed from the safety huddles, and I love the different perspectives we all bring.\u201d<\/p>\n
The meetings give staff a consistent grasp on what\u2019s going on in the school \u2014 and community. At Arlington, 84% of students are considered economically disadvantaged. Roughly 30% of students receive special education services and 11% are homeless.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes, it\u2019s big conversations like homelessness, a sudden death in the family, or a shooting in the community,\u201d Caldwell said. \u201cSometimes it\u2019s noticing a student who is irritable and in yesterday\u2019s clothes, and taking them to the resource room to get new clothes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Staff also implemented a system last year that divides an entire school into smaller teams \u2014 called \u201chouses\u201d \u2014 to help build community among students and teachers, and rewards students for good behavior. The \u201chouse system\u201d will be used across middle schools districtwide this year.<\/p>\n
The goals, incentives and celebrations lead to positive behavior, said Dreger, the assistant principal. He meets with each grade level once a quarter to discuss school climate, safety and review data.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are positive things we do to build children up, but we also have consequences with actions,\u201d Caldwell said. \u201cSuspensions aren\u2019t the end all, be all \u2014 sometimes they are warranted \u2014 but if a child makes a mistake, they need to be informed on what could have been done differently, and they need to feel they can give back to the community they harmed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Punishment can include \u201ccommunity service\u201d opportunities before the student reintegrates into the classroom. If a child rips posters off the hallway walls, for example, their community service would be helping teachers repost the projects.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe let the kids talk it out, and they come up with their own way to apologize and say how they will do better,\u201d Caldwell said. \u201cThey need a moment of knowing it\u2019s OK to make mistakes, but knowing they can learn from it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key thing is, we still hold them accountable. We try to get to the root cause of what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
What will this year hold?<\/p>\n
Changes at the school last year were noticeable to Dontaya Fisher, mother of rising fifth grade student Omari Kemp and incoming pre-kindergarten student, Sir Yancey, 3.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seemed like they put an extra push last year, as far as attendance, violence and getting excited about coming to school,\u201d Fisher said. \u201cI see it getting better for the future, especially after last year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Omari, 10, had behavioral issues. He has been able to better regulate his emotions through lessons on mediation, social skills and deescalation, his mother said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe social class he\u2019s in, as far as the resources they provide him with, has been very good to him,\u201d Fisher said. \u201cHe\u2019s much more calm now, and there\u2019s no more tantrums.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marotta hopes to build on similar lessons this year. Teachers, also every morning, lead lessons focused on social-emotional skills. Her goal this year is to improve targeted support for students with extra needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI see kids stepping into a leadership role at Arlington,\u201d Marotta said. \u201cEach year, I see more students wanting to be a part of the community and make a positive impact. When kids see teachers that are passionate, they want to be a part of it; and I think Arlington is going to thrive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caldwell will continue to lean in on student leaders to be a positive influence among their peers. Poor behaviors, by nature, garner others\u2019 attention. The student leaders have tried to encourage staff to spotlight attention for good behaviors, Caldwell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey said, we as peers want to give attention to when they do something well,\u201d Caldwell said. \u201cIt\u2019s seeing it through the child\u2019s lens, and having a say in how they lead.\u201d<\/p>\n
The school\u2019s goal is now reducing the number of physical aggression incidents. Caldwell defined physical aggression as when a student has a hard time managing emotions but doesn\u2019t touch others.<\/p>\n
\u201cPhysical aggression is often, \u2018I\u2019m bringing trauma into school, and I\u2019m frustrated,\u2019 \u201d Caldwell said. \u201cThey enter the building that way, and we try to help them honor that their emotions are valid, and here\u2019s how we can manage them.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time, the building is fully staffed, Caldwell said. Families appear to have more trust and interest in the school. Staff morale has improved.<\/p>\n
While improvement in academics have yet to be seen \u2014 English and math proficiency rates on state assessments schoolwide were less than 11% in the 2024-25 school year \u2014 Caldwell believes the growth is coming.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though we were focused on culture and violence, we saw an uptick on academics,\u201d she said. \u201cWe saw growth on local assessments, because students felt safe and staff had more time to educate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caldwell believes her ambitious plan to increase reading proficiency 30% schoolwide can be met through a strategy called \u201cimprovement science,\u201d a data-driven model that helps teachers tailor instruction and focus on where students need remediation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s more rapidly looking at data and making skill-based decisions,\u201d she said. \u201cOur staff wanted to see students reading, but our systems weren\u2019t doing it fast enough. This is helping them do that work in a more structured way, and at first, they\u2019ll be working hard, but we\u2019ll see growth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Payne-Ford, the community advocate and parent, is optimistic for the literacy emphasis for her son, Amari, 8, entering second grade.<\/p>\n
Her older son, Mikey, 10, has autism. As he enters fifth grade, Payne-Ford anticipates Mikey continuing integration in the general education classrooms when appropriate.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is now in the \u2018real world,\u2019 regular education, and is still getting his needs met,\u201d Payne-Ford said. \u201cThere is change. Our teachers are the reason my son\u2019s in regular education now. We didn\u2019t think that would happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the following year \u2026<\/p>\n
In the 2027-28 school year, Arlington will experience changes under Pittsburgh Public\u2019s reconfiguration plan, called the Future-Ready Facilities Plan.<\/p>\n
Arlington will be a dedicated middle school, serving students grades six through eight. It will receive South Brook students, a school that will close. Arlington elementary-aged students will attend Concord, Phillips or Roosevelt.<\/p>\n
The district\u2019s Parent Ambassadors program, which launched this summer, aims to help families navigate the transition. Arlington\u2019s Parent Ambassador will encourage parents to access online school portals, Caldwell said. Only 9% of school families have logged onto those tools.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere will be a lot of work to get ready for next year,\u201d said school board member Eva Diodati, whose election district includes Arlington. \u201cIt will be a big change, and I know people are nervous, but I think the success Arlington has had means the place can handle change.\u201d<\/p>\n
Diodati believes the soft skills and relationship building students picked up at Arlington will translate over to other schools. Having the \u201chouse system\u201d at all district middle schools is also a bright spot.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019ll see a lot more consistency from our middle schools. The consistent spirit of belonging, teamwork, conflict resolution and responding to problems, instead of reacting, gives me hope,\u201d Diodati said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSchools in a similar position can take inspiration from Arlington. It\u2019s hard, but it\u2019s not impossible. I would love it if other schools look to Arlington as an opportunity to innovate and build themselves up.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For years, learning and working at Pittsburgh Arlington PreK-8 school was overwhelming. In the 2024-25 school year, said…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":271120,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[73,75,74],"class_list":["post-271119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pittsburgh","tag-pittsburgh","tag-pittsburgh-headlines","tag-pittsburgh-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/271119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=271119"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/271119\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/271120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=271119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=271119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=271119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}