Leading for Prevention: Empowering School Leadership to Combat Human Trafficking and Strengthen School Safety and Culture

Presenters

• Elina Acosta, Criminal Justice Coordinating CouncilFollow

First Presenter's Highest Degree Earned

MA

Year First Presenter's Degree Was Awarded

2020

First Presenter's Field of Study

Public Administration and Policy

Institution Where First Presenter Received Highest Degree

University of Georgia

First Presenter's Institution

Criminal Justice Coordinating Council

First Presenter's Brief Bio and Description of Credentials for This Presentation

Elina Acosta is the Statewide Human Trafficking Task Force Coordinator with Georgia’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC). She leads the Human Trafficking Unit’s special projects, including coordinating the Statewide Human Trafficking Task Force, Georgia’s Coalition to Combat Human Trafficking, and the Statewide Labor Trafficking Task Force. In this role, Elina provides programmatic support to workgroups and subcommittees, manages strategic initiatives, and coordinates statewide training for law enforcement, prosecutors, victim service providers, government agencies, businesses, universities, and community members. She represents Georgia on national initiatives, including the National Labor Trafficking Training Steering Committee and the Region 4 Collaborative, which unites southeastern states to address human trafficking. Elina also leads federal grant applications, aligning funding opportunities with Georgia’s programs and initiatives to support victims and stakeholders. She holds a Master’s in Public Administration and Policy, with concentrations in Local Governance, Public Policy, and Criminal Justice, and a Bachelor’s in Political Science, graduating with honors from the University of Georgia.

Location

Vernon

Document Type

Individual Presentation

Primary Strand

School Safety

Relevance to Primary Strand

This session relates primarily to the School Safety track because it equips school and district leaders with practical strategies to integrate human trafficking prevention into comprehensive safety planning. Participants will explore approaches aligned with the key domains of school safety: prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery, ensuring schools proactively protect students.

By the end of the session, leaders will be prepared to foster a proactive safety culture where students thrive in secure, nurturing, and vigilant learning environments.

Alignment with School Improvement Plan Topics

School Safety

Brief Program Description

Human trafficking is a critical public safety and human rights issue affecting youth in every community. Schools play a key role in prevention through strong leadership, informed staff, and proactive safety systems. This session equips school and district leaders with practical, research-based strategies to prevent trafficking while strengthening school culture, climate, and safety. Participants will learn to raise staff awareness, share leadership responsibilities, and implement best practices in prevention, communication, and safety planning. Emphasis is placed on early identification, effective intervention, and building schoolwide resilience to ensure students thrive in safe, supportive environments.

Summary

Human trafficking is a growing public safety and human rights issue affecting youth in every community. Schools are uniquely positioned to identify and prevent trafficking through strong leadership, informed staff, and proactive safety systems. By integrating prevention education into existing frameworks—such as trauma-informed practices, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), and Social Emotional Learning (SEL)—schools foster a culture of vigilance, empowerment, and care that supports all students and strengthens overall school climate.

This session equips school and district leaders with practical, research-based strategies to prevent human trafficking while enhancing school culture, climate, and safety. Participants will learn to build staff awareness, share leadership responsibilities, and apply best practices to improve prevention, communication, and safety planning. Emphasis is placed on early identification, effective intervention, and building schoolwide resilience, ensuring that students are supported in safe, nurturing environments.

Learning Objectives

1. Strengthen Leadership for School Safety and Culture

• Educate staff at all levels about human trafficking and clarify their roles in prevention, safety, and student well-being.
• Use data and research to identify vulnerabilities, address gaps, and guide targeted interventions.
• Promote leadership practices that enhance staff wellness and foster a resilient, proactive safety culture.

2. Advance School Safety through Prevention and Preparedness

• Integrate human trafficking prevention into a comprehensive safety framework, including prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.
• Implement sustainable strategies that build protective factors and promote safe, supportive learning environments.
• Engage students, staff, families, and community partners to strengthen awareness, reporting, and coordinated response systems.

This session empowers leaders to create safer schools where every student can thrive, protected from exploitation.

Evidence

This proposal draws on promising practices identified in the Framework for School Safety and Prevention and Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems models, which emphasize leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and prevention-based safety planning. Embedding trafficking prevention within these established systems ensures sustainability, scalability, and alignment with school improvement goals. By emphasizing leadership development, staff capacity-building, and data-informed decision-making, the approach equips school leaders to integrate prevention and safety efforts effectively—creating safer, more resilient learning environments.

Learning Objective 1

Participants will be able to strengthen leadership practices that promote staff wellness, resilience, and proactive approaches to student safety and well-being.

Learning Objective 2

Participants will be able to identify, prevent, and respond to human trafficking by applying data-informed strategies and addressing system gaps within their school

Learning Objective 3

Participants will be able to embed human trafficking prevention within a holistic safety framework—emphasizing prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery—through collaboration with students, families, and community partners.

Start Date

6-1-2026 10:15 AM

End Date

6-1-2026 11:30 AM

Recommended Citation

Acosta, Elina, "Leading for Prevention: Empowering School Leadership to Combat Human Trafficking and Strengthen School Safety and Culture" (2026). Southeast Conference on School Climate. 5.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/secsc/2026/2026/5

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.