The NewEra412 Network

Safe Passage School Safety Model

Safe Passage exists to interrupt the transmission of violence among Pittsburgh Public Schools students, treating violence not as a discipline issue but as a public health crisis that spreads through relationships and can be prevented, contained, and reduced. Through the Safe Passage School Safety Model, Safe Passage Coordinators work inside school buildings, building trust with students, mediating conflicts before they escalate, and connecting students to mentorship, case management, and wraparound resources. Student leaders are developed into Safety Ambassadors who reinforce this work among their peers, shifting norms and attitudes around violence from the inside out.

In October 2021, Taili Thompson implemented the School Safety Model. Its early success demonstrated that the approach worked, and with funding from a PCCD grant and close collaboration with the City of Pittsburgh, Safe Passage expanded to seven schools—six Pittsburgh Public high schools and one middle school. What began as a model in a single school has grown into a citywide strategy for interrupting violence and building safer schools and communities. Since 2023, the program has been sustained through the generous support of The Buhl Foundation, Eden Hall Foundation, the City of Pittsburgh, PCCD, Roy Hunt Foundation, The HEAR Foundation, and Cities United.