AT GOLDEN VALLEY, STUDENTS KEEP PEACE SAFE SCHOOL AMBASSADORS PROGRAM TEACHES CAMPUS CONFLICT RESOLUTION.

Byline: CONNIE LLANOS Staff Writer

CANYON COUNTRY -- At newly built Golden Valley High, kids don't think twice about getting into trouble -- they think three or four times because it's their friends who are watching them.

The 2-year-old high school was the first school in the Santa Clarita Valley to participate in a program that gets students involved with teachers to keep the peace.

The program -- Safe School Ambassadors -- seeks out students who are already leaders in their own school cliques and teaches them how to use their natural leadership skills to resolve conflicts on campus.

Some students call members of this crew ``snitches'' but senior Jocelyn Turcotte said she doesn't mind. She feels like she is doing the right thing.

Turcotte recalls when she was able to stop some underage drinking on campus.

``Plus, it looks good on the college transcripts,'' she said.

Assistant Principal Joel Nelson said he first learned about the Safe Schools program before Golden Valley opened.

Because of Golden Valley's attendance boundaries, administrators knew the campus would be diverse. They also knew many of their students would be attending school with other kids for the first time.

Nelson said it was a proactive decision.

``We wanted a way to reach out to all of our diverse students and get them connected to a new environment,'' Nelson said.

Nelson added that research supported his decision.

Students hear about conflicts first, studies have shown. And by having these student leaders step in before conflicts happen, there is a much better chance of resolution.

Golden Valley senior Aaron Edwards has been involved in Safe School Ambassadors since he started at Golden Valley.

The 17-year-old center on the varsity basketball team transferred to Golden Valley as a 10th grader and remembers numerous fights on campus each day.

``There was like three or four every day,'' Edwards said.

When he was approached to participate in Safe Schools, his group of friends didn't extend beyond his basketball buddies. The program gave him the chance to really get to know different people on campus, and now the 6-foot-plus teen says he ``roams the campus.''

The program's success had prompted William S. Hart Union High School District to purchase the rights to the program to train all their schools in the district.

Parent company Community Matters, based in Sebastopol, Calif., said Hart now has the ability to teach the program at all its campuses without having to pay for company trainers.

``I can't say enough about this program,'' said Golden Valley math teacher Erum Jones.

As one of the first teachers to get involved, Jones has now helped train 110 ambassadors on her campus alone, and recently trained 18 more adults.

``It's empowering and equipping these kids to make good decisions,'' Jones said.

The purpose of the program is not to use students as vehicles to get other students in trouble, but rather to keep them safe and connected, Jones said.

``It's a way to stand up for the little guy.''

Jones remembers a situation where a young girl was contemplating seriously injuring herself.

A student who was an ambassador came to Jones and let her know that someone was in trouble and she needed her help. Jones credits the program with allowing that student to trust her.

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