School Safety and Facilities
Brandon A. Cruz, Supervisor
School Safety & Facilities
(914) 345-8500, Ext. 3167
bcruz@swboces.org
Non-Violent Crisis Intervention®
Nonviolent Crisis Intervention® Training provides your educators with the skills to safely recognize and respond to everyday crisis situations. You will learn to:
- Minimize Physical Interventions
- Recognize & Respond to Defensive Behaviors
- Understand What’s Behind the Behavior
- Address the Needs of the Individual
Regional Crisis Response Team
The SWBOCES Regional Crisis Response Team (RCRT) supports school districts after a crisis by providing Consultation, Counseling, Debriefing, and Support. A crisis can be a natural disaster, the passing of an individual within your school community, or a distant event that has a deep effect on students and staff. More information about the becoming an RCRT member or accessing services is available on the RCRT Resources Page
Coronavirus Resources
Southern Westchester BOCES has assembled and shared reliable resources about the COVID-19 outbreak since early in the pandemic. Our Coronavirus Resources Page is a continuously updated repository of information and guidance from medical professionals and public health officials, curated to inform and protect the health and safety of our community.
Events coming up
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SWBOCES - 450 Mamaroneck Avenue, 3rd floor, Harrison, NY
RECOVS Mental Health Education Leaders Partnership (MHELP)
Mental health leadership teams from SWBOCES's RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium will meet to discuss and collaborate around grant implementation, including:
- Social-Emotional Learning (including launching CASEL's Leading Schoolwide SEL course for district leadership teams)
- MTSS-i (including systems & structures and data & assessment)
- professional learning plans
- budget & logistics
- other grant-related considerationsCenter for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
SWBOCES - 450 Mamaroneck Avenue, 3rd floor, Harrison, NY
Summer @ the Center: The Institute for Opportunities in Education
This interactive summer conference is designed for educators, administrators, and practitioners eager to deepen their understanding and enhance their practices around creating supportive and welcoming learning environments for all students.
Participants will:
- Explore practical, actionable strategies for fostering inclusive practices
- Collaborate with peers
- Gain tools for cultivating meaningful and supportive changes within classrooms and schools
- Access valuable resourcesAttendees can anticipate engaging sessions focused on practical strategies for creating environments where all students thrive, providing innovative resources and insights applicable to their educational settings.
Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
SWBOCES - 450 Mamaroneck Avenue, 3rd floor, Harrison, NY
Integrating Social Studies into ELA for Elementary Teams
As we understand the importance of knowledge-building to improve students' reading development - and we struggle to find time for Social Studies in our elementary schedules - let's improve the integration of Social Studies within our ELA units.
In this workshop, we will unpack our existing ELA/literacy and Social Studies standards and practices, identify opportunities to bridge the subjects, and begin revising units to integrate ELA/literacy and Social Studies.
Participants are encouraged to come as teams to support collaboration around curriculum updates to implement in the new school year and will receive a 10% credit for attending with at least two other district colleagues.Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
Restorative Practices for School & District Leaders for RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium
Please note that this training is limited to leaders from districts who are part of SWBOCES's RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium. If you have questions about whether you are eligible to attend, please contact Maisha Campbell (mcampbell@swboces.org). Lori DeCarlo of Restorative Edge Consulting will lead this interactive training, which is essential for leaders who are bringing restorative practices to their schools/districts - to understand key principles of restorative practices and conditions for systemic implementation designed to support social-emotional learning and mental health.
The training will focus on:
• Restorative practices as a trauma-informed approach for creating a culture of belonging, safety, and inclusion.
• Responsive restorative practices, including Affective Communication/Non-Violent Communication, Tier 2 Whole Group Responsive Circles, and Tier 2 Restorative Circles to respond to specific incidents of harm.
• Systemic considerations, including implementation science and discipline policies and practices (e.g. Codes of Conduct)Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
Restorative Practices for School & District Leaders for RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium
Please note that this training is limited to leaders from districts who are part of SWBOCES's RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium. If you have questions about whether you are eligible to attend, please contact Maisha Campbell (mcampbell@swboces.org). Lori DeCarlo of Restorative Edge Consulting will lead this interactive training, which is essential for leaders who are bringing restorative practices to their schools/districts - to understand key principles of restorative practices and conditions for systemic implementation designed to support social-emotional learning and mental health.
The training will focus on:
• Restorative practices as a trauma-informed approach for creating a culture of belonging, safety, and inclusion.
• Responsive restorative practices, including Affective Communication/Non-Violent Communication, Tier 2 Whole Group Responsive Circles, and Tier 2 Restorative Circles to respond to specific incidents of harm.
• Systemic considerations, including implementation science and discipline policies and practices (e.g. Codes of Conduct)Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
Restorative Practices for School & District Leaders for RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium
Please note that this training is limited to leaders from districts who are part of SWBOCES's RECOVS Mental Health Grant Consortium. If you have questions about whether you are eligible to attend, please contact Maisha Campbell (mcampbell@swboces.org). Lori DeCarlo of Restorative Edge Consulting will lead this interactive training, which is essential for leaders who are bringing restorative practices to their schools/districts - to understand key principles of restorative practices and conditions for systemic implementation designed to support social-emotional learning and mental health.
The training will focus on:
• Restorative practices as a trauma-informed approach for creating a culture of belonging, safety, and inclusion.
• Responsive restorative practices, including Affective Communication/Non-Violent Communication, Tier 2 Whole Group Responsive Circles, and Tier 2 Restorative Circles to respond to specific incidents of harm.
• Systemic considerations, including implementation science and discipline policies and practices (e.g. Codes of Conduct)Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
SWBOCES Center for Career Services, 65 Grasslands Rd. Valhalla, NY
Regional Crisis Response Team (RCRT): Kickoff Meeting!
We're excited to kick off the 2025-2026 school year with our first Regional Crisis Response Team (RCRT) meeting!
Join us on Thursday, September 18, 2025, from 8:00-10:00 AM for a morning of connection, collaboration, and inspiration. Enjoy breakfast with colleagues, take a campus tour to see students in action, and hear from team members who have recently deployed in the field. Together, we'll reflect on our experiences and begin planning for a strong year of crisis support across our districts.
Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
SWBOCES - 450 Mamaroneck Avenue, 3rd floor, Harrison, NY
SLS- Discovery Education BTS Bootcamp
Discovery Education continues to empower educators with resources, strategies and tools for creating quality lessons using multi-modal digital resources. For Back-to-School 2025-26, we are combining all that teachers and students love about the DE ecosystem with new content, including Career Connect and the AI Assessment Generator!
Join us this Fall at Southern Westchester BOCES to learn about the best ways to utilize all that Discovery Education has to offer as well as exciting updated features, synchronous and asynchronous activities, assignment templates, background builder lessons and much more:
*Ready-to-Use Activities & Video Quizzes
*Supports for NYS Science Investigations
*AI Assessment Generator *Career Connect
*Core 4 Focus & Supplemental Supports
*Spotlight on Strategies for All Subjects and Grade Levels RECOMMENDEDLunch will be provided by Discovery Education.
Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
SLS Communication Coordinators Meeting
Quarterly meetings for SLS Communication Coordinators as mandated in NY State Education Law 90.18. Communication Coordinators are informed on topics such as New York State Education Department updates, technology, and Information Fluency Skills. Professional development is provided on current issues with the expectation that it is shared with other school librarians in district.
Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support -
SWBOCES - 450 Mamaroneck Avenue, 3rd floor, Harrison, NY
SLS Council Meeting
The School Library Council is responsible for developing and approving the Plan of Service; is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Plan of Service; recommends for approval the annual budget prior to submission to the District Superintendent for his signature; and supports the activities of the School Library System, through service on a committee.
Center for Professional Learning and Curriculum Support
Mandated Training
The Mandated Training Link above lists School Safety training mandates and Facilities requirements for all NYS schools and districts. Please refer to the link and to our Training and Services listed below.
Regional Facilities News
Southern Westchester BOCES is proud to partner with the Southeastern Chapter of the New York State School Facilities Association (NYSSFA). Please use the links below to find the NYSSFA meeting calendar and training information.
NYSSFA Calendar
NYSSFA Training Opportunities
School Safety Training
- Active Shooter Training
- Building Level Emergency Response Planning
- CPR/AED
- Crisis Response Training
- DASA/Violence Prevention refreshers
- Develop Crisis Plans
- Incident Command Management
- Lockdown Emergency Training
- New Building Emergency Plan Template
- Risk Assessments
- Safety Audits
- Table Top Exercises
Facilities/Compliance
- Asbestos testing and training
- Bloodborne Pathogens
- Chemical Hygiene Plan Development
- Chemical and Petroleum Storage
- Cooling Towers Inspections
- CPR/AED
- Fire Inspections
- Indoor Air Quality Testing
- Lockout/Tagout
- Playground and Gymnasium Inspections
- Right to Know
- Underground Storage Tank Programs
- Water Testing
