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Background The aim of this randomized control trial is to test the impact of providing additional training and support to volunteers who are paired with youth of color in the Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) community-based mentoring program. The aim of the intervention activities is to enhance the capacity of mentors to have more culturally responsive and informed interactions with their mentees of color, thereby strengthening the youth’s ethnic/racial identity and abilities to both cope with experiences of racism and contribute to causes that advance social justice. Methods Recruitment started in June 2022, with a goal of enrolling 240 dyads (i.e., “matches”), each consisting of a volunteer mentor and a youth of color aged 9- to 17-years old with whom they were paired through BBBS. Each match is assigned randomly to receive either standard BBBS services or to services that incorporate the intervention activities (i.e., approximately 3 h of initial training that is then supplemented with booster emails and in the context of the contacts that case managers have with mentors routinely in the program). The BBBS staff who are responsible for delivering the enhancements receive preparatory training as well as ongoing support with implementation. The study has a mixed-methods design. Survey data, on outcomes (e.g., ethnic/racial identity, sense of mattering, efficacy) aligned with the theory of change, are collected at multiple time points within 12 months from mentors, youth and their parent/guardian, and BBBS staff. Multiple qualitative interviews are conducted with a subset of youth, mentors, parents and BBBS staff to examine how the intervention works and how it impacts relationship development and youth outcomes over time. Integration of quantitative and qualitative data will aim to better understand whether and how the intervention works with respect to its potential influence on mentor attitudes (e.g., cultural humility), mentor-youth interactions, and emergent identities and capacities that have well-documented importance for the resilience and well-being of youth of color. Discussion This culturally tailored training and support intervention for volunteer mentors may be one way to increase the effectiveness of mentoring programs for youth of color. Study findings will have implications for youth mentoring programs and for other settings (e.g., schools, after school programs) in which children and adolescents form relationships with adults. Trial registration www.clinicaltrials.gov —Clinical Trial #NCT05391711; original 05.21.2022; Amendment 07.01.2022: study status was updated and more details were provided on outcome measures; Amendment 11/13/2022: sample size was modified, a few mentor outcome measures were added in the 12-months survey, the timing of a mentor measure was updated.

Teachers experience verbal and physical aggression from a variety of aggressors in schools worldwide. However, most school violence and aggression research is focused on students, with few empirical studies examining teacher aggression from parent offenders. This study investigated the school ecology associated with teachers’ experiences of aggression from students’ parents. We applied and adapted a school climate framework to examine the qualitative survey responses of 450 United States teachers who reported their most upsetting experiences involving parent aggression. Using a directed content analysis approach, teacher victimization was examined through the four school climate domains of safety, academic, institutional environment, and community. Significant socioemotional and physical safety concerns regarding verbal and physical aggression from parents, often related to school discipline practices, were identified. In the academic domain, parent aggression was associated with parent–teacher disagreements regarding grades and services, challenges with administrative leadership, and job stability concerns. The institutional environment domain illustrated where incidents took place, school resources, and policies regarding security and student placement as key factors in parent aggression. Results from the community domain highlighted issues of communication, mistrust, negative attitudes, accountability, diversity, and neighborhood and societal factors. Teacher experiences and exemplar themes provide context and further elaborate upon the school climate framework. Implications for research, school practice, and policy are presented.

Student perpetrated violence against teachers is widespread, yet few studies differentiate teacher experiences of violence by school level (i.e., elementary, middle, and high school). This study, based upon 2,558 pre-kindergarten through 12 th grade teacher survey responses, revealed differences in types of student aggression against teachers by school level. Middle and high school teachers were more likely to report verbal harassment compared to elementary school teachers. Middle school teachers were most likely to report property offenses. Elementary and middle school teachers were more likely to report physical aggression than high school teachers. Demographic predictors of teacher-directed violence were also examined at each school level. Across all school levels, urban teachers had a greater probability of experiencing a violent incident. For elementary teachers, race/ethnicity and teaching experience were also significant risk factors. Future research, policy, and practice implications and recommendations are discussed.