James. P. Comer, MD, MPH

By James P. Comer, MD, MPH

Editor's note: The following is Dr. James P. Comer's keynote address at the Howard University School of Education Honors and Awards ceremony on May 7, 2015.

I am pleased to be back home again at Howard; and to share this happy occasion with you. Fifty-five years ago, in 1960, I received my M.D. degree on a lawn not far from here. And I am going to mark that happy occasion with several classmates this evening.

I had planned to practice general medicine in my hometown. But things changed.

During my internship in 1960-61, I observed three able African-American childhood friends going on downhill life courses. In 1962, while in the military, I began to explore how education might address the needs of a growing number of young people like my friends, by taking a course in "The History of Education" at the School of Education here at Howard. Also, I began to ask myself why I and my four siblings, from a similar under-educated, low-income family background, came to experience more rewarding outcomes.

The answer was our parent's appreciation of what child development and education can do, and their commitment to excellence in school and in life. The expression and support of these values enabled their five children to obtain 13 college degrees and to lead productive, satisfying lives.

I began to realize that our parents had intentionally geared our family life and social network culture to make these outcomes possible. Eventually I pulled the principles of a supportive culture and child development from my family, and the centrality of development from my public health and child psychiatry training, and devised a method of applying them in very low achieving schools in a way that enabled many young people like my childhood friends to achieve, and to have a better chance in life.

Howard University presented me with an honorary degree for this work in 1993. And I was pleased that the education students expressed the greatest appreciation. Our work and outcome were an expression of the enduring value of a commitment to excellence from generation to generation to generation.

A few years before my mother asked me what all the fuss was about; and what we were doing in those schools. She had had less than two years of school in rural Mississippi, and my then deceased father less than six in rural Alabama. I explained that we helped the staff and parents create conditions that were warm and supportive and motivated students to value thinking, problem solving, working through conflict rather than fighting, and more; and to do so through learning activities related to museums, election polling places, and other educational experiences, rather than trying to control them through punishment; helping students take responsibility for their own academic achievement and behavior.

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Dr. James Comer receives CASEL's Mary Utne O'Brien Award 

By Cynthia R. Savo

Dr. James P. Comer and  Dr. Roger P. Weissberg

Dr. James Comer has been awarded the 2015 Mary Utne O'Brien Award for Excellent in Expanding the Evidence- based Practice of Social and Emotional Learning given by CASEL, a national organization advancing the development of academic, social, and emotional competence for school-aged children. Ellen Moir, the founder and chief executive officer of New Teacher Center (NTC), also received the award.

"Dr. Comer's vision and practical approaches to promote children's social, emotional, and academic development have benefitted thousands of educators and millions of children," said Dr. Roger P. Weissberg, CASEL's Chief Knowledge Officer and board vice chair.

"I was honored to receive the Mary Utne O'Brien Award from CASEL, and I appreciate Roger's acknowledgement at the beginning of his award presentation about how his discussions with me as a young member of the Yale Child Study Center faculty greatly informed his thinking."

Dr. James P. Comer receives Champion for Children Award

By Cynthia R. Savo

Dr. James P. Comer received the 2015 Champion for Children Award from the Center for Children's Advocacy (CCA) at the Mark Twain House in Hartford on May 12, 2015. The annual award honors Connecticut leaders "whose dedication and commitment have tremendous positive impact on the lives of our most vulnerable, disadvantaged children."

The other recipients of the 2015 Champions for Children Award are Julian Ford, Ph.D, associate professor of psychiatry at UCONN Health Center and the director of the Center for Trauma Response, Recovery, and Preparedness (CTRP), and Marta Bentham, the Director of Family Services and Ombudsman for Hartford Public Schools.

CCA executive director Martha Stone said, "The work of these extraordinary people has made such an overwhelming difference in the lives of the children in our communities who are totally vulnerable and desperately need support. Together, we serve children in the poorest communities, those suffering from abuse or neglect, children who need educational support, those without a safe place to live. This year's award recipients have worked tirelessly to give children and youth the opportunity they deserve to be safe, be healthy, and look forward to a secure future."

Center attorneys provide individual legal representation for abused and neglected children and for those who suffer from inadequate educational support, lack of access to healthcare or mental health care, juvenile justice involvement, or racial injustice.

Comer SDP leaders featured in new video

By Catherine Romaine Henderson

In a new video produced by the TEACH Foundation, Dr. James P. Comer and Dr. Camille Cooper join members of the Hartsville, S.C. community as they reflect on the local premiere of the PBS documentary, 180 Days: Hartsville that focuses on a fifth grader, struggling with behavioral issues throughout the 2013-14 school year. Interspersed throughout the documentary, glimpses of key community outreach and involvement lay a foundation, but the documentary does not delve deeply into what truly makes Hartsville the unique place it is, or concretely demonstrates how the Comer School Development Program (SDP) set into motion the success that ultimately ends the full, two-hour program. This new TEACH Foundation video focuses on how Hartsville is using the Comer SDP model to develop the whole child, and includes an overview of a unique public-private partnership (PULSE) that involves a $5 million investment in Hartsville students in the Darlington County School District.

The Comer SDP's work in Hartsville, a major component of the PULSE initiative is led by Dr. Cooper, the SDP's Director of Teaching, Learning, and Development.  

To watch After 180 Days Hartsville: A Community Perspective, click here.