Hot Spot Mapping is a student-driven program which asks them to identify places and people at school that make the students feel safe. Hot Spot Mapping has significant potential to help schools and other community organizations both identify areas for improvement related to safety and culture, and also center the community in creating solutions. As one of the first organizations piloting this initiative in Colorado, we have been able to develop innovative and interactive ways to include students in this important work. We’ve received highly positive feedback from our partner school.

Hot Spot Mapping is based on the principles of Positive Youth Development.1 We engage a core group of students within the school to facilitate the hot spot mapping activity. Together we analyze the data, then present the findings to staff in order to brainstorm solutions together.

Hot Spot Mapping is designed to identify exactly where a school’s “assets” are: the people and places that make them feel safe. As students identify the assets, they can also begin to identify what makes those teachers/staff members approachable and effective. Then, school staff can work to replicate those best practices. Hot Spot Mapping also identifies both physical areas in or around the schools where students gather and do not feel safe. Through this process, The Conflict Center can work with the school to identify strategies and practices to ensure a safe school environment for all.

Rooted in the values of The Conflict Center, we first focus on the school’s strengths. We analyze the good that is already happening and seek to learn from those practices. We also won’t shy away from difficult conversations or issues that arise during the process. Results from the mapping are aggregated and sorted by grade, gender, race and sexual orientation. We do this to best identify whether certain spaces or people were more or less welcoming to different groups within the school. From here, we create a summary presentation for students to present to school staff to begin dialogue around school culture.