School Climate and Culture

Audience: District-level climate and culture leaders

COMPASS Climate and Culture Leads will hold monthly regional networking and learning opportunities for district and school leaders to engage in a bite-sized strategy or educational article, networking and discussion centered on a guiding question, and finally open Q & A time for school climate and culture problems of practice. The objective of these offerings is to offer current practice research and strategies connected to Pathway content, build relationships both with Regional Climate and Culture Leads, as well as regional leaders with each other, and offer time for open questions.

Dates and Times

Monthly one-hour meetings. More information coming soon!
 

Audience: District-level leadership teams (2-4 members required) 

This cohort will guide participants through a full year of the school climate improvement process grounded in implementation science. Participants will work to articulate their district vision for school climate, determine their building and district school climate needs and capacity to implement school climate improvements, as well as draft a school climate improvement plan.
Please note: School Climate improvement is a 3–5-year process. Participants will have the option to participate in Part 2 the following school year. Part 2 will consist of guidance and support through implementation of the selected school climate interventions from Part 1.

Dates and Times

Synchronous meetings take place on Tuesdays from 1:00-3:00 pm on these dates: 9/30/2025, 10/28/2025, 1/27/2026, 3/31/2026, and 5/12/2026

Register for the School Climate Within the MnMTSS Framework Year-Long Cohort

Audience: District-level leadership teams (2-4 members required)

This cohort will guide participants through an accelerated school climate improvement process. Teams will participate in a full-day summer workshop building knowledge and skills on the process of improving school climate, including refining their team, creating or revising a climate vision, reviewing data, and best practices in choosing school climate surveys. Following the full-day workshop teams will concurrently engage in a professional learning series in one or more of the following areas: Engagement, Environment, or Safety. Finally, teams will reconnect with their cohort in the spring to unpack current implementation strengths, areas for growth, and plan for continuous improvement.

Dates and Times

Synchronous meetings take place on Wednesdays from 1:30-3:30 pm on the following dates: 8/13/2025, 11/12/2025, 2/11/2026, and 5/13/2026.

Register for the School Climate Improvement Withing the MnMTSS Framework (Accelerated Cohort)

Audience: Building-level climate and culture leaders (2-3 members required).

This series will support leaders in building strong engagement practices to facilitate a positive school climate. Participants will learn about the importance of building a strong school community inclusive of student, family, and community voices and will gain strategies on building connectedness and meaningful relationships.

Dates and Times

Synchronous meetings will take place on Tuesdays from 1:30-3:30 pm on the following dates: 10/7/2025, 10/21/2025, 11/4/2025, 11/18/2025, 12/2/2025, 12/16/2025.

Register for the Engagement Series: Building Community and Engaging Voices

Audience: Building-level and/or district-level climate and culture leaders (2-3 members required).

This series will support leaders in examining alternatives to exclusionary discipline. Participants will gain an understanding of how to build welcoming school environments and structure of belonging, as well as develop skills to implement instructional, restorative, and reflective responses to employ supportive discipline practices.

Dates and Times

Synchronous meetings will take place on Tuesdays from 1:30-3:30 pm on the following dates: 1/6/2026, 1/20/2026, 2/3/2026, 2/17/2026, 3/3/2026, and 3/17/2026.

Register for the Environment Series: Examining Alternatives to Exclusionary Discipline

Audience:  District or building leaders looking to build trauma-informed, resilient schools. 

This series will support staff, educators, and administrators in becoming a trauma-informed resilient school. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of trauma and proactive strategies to use school wide as well as with students who need the most support, shifting adult mindsets to build positive, welcoming, and safe school communities.

Dates and Times

Synchronous meetings will take place on Tuesdays from 1:00-3:00 pm on the following dates: 10/14/2025, 12/9/2025, 1/13/2026, 2/10/2026, 3/10/2026, and 4/14/2026.

Register for School Safety Series: Supporting Student Mental Health: 10 Steps to Create a Trauma-Informed, Resilient School

Learn about these opportunities on pages 39-42 in the 2025-2026 COMPASS in MnMTSS catalog (scroll to the bottom of the MDE COMPASS web page).

• School Safety Series: Social Emotional Learning
• School Safety Series: Support Student Mental Health through Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems
• Supporting Staff Wellbeing and Resilience
• Cultivating Compassion Resilience for Leaders