1 of 40

Piecing Together the Alphabet Soup Puzzle:

Alignment and Integration of PBIS, RP, RC, SEL, Trauma-Informed Schools, and Academics

Amy Wheeler-Sutton and Lauralee Keach

VTPBIS State Team

2 of 40

How many is your school trying to implement?

3 of 40

Agenda

The “What,” the “Why,” and the “When”
Overview of Evidence-Based Frameworks/Initiatives/Programs/Practices
The “How,” the “Who,” and the “Where”

PBIS/MTSS Framework
Embedding Within Academics

Chamberlin’s Alignment and Integration Journey
Other examples and tools

4 of 40

During this session, consider:

What will you be able to implement?
How will you know you’re implementing it well?
How will your most vulnerable students benefit?
How will you/your team sustain what you’re implementing?

5 of 40

What is Alignment?

“To be in precise adjustment or correct relative position”

“The proper positioning of parts in relation to each other”

Organizational Alignment:

“The simultaneous implementation

of multiple initiatives with

efficiency and effectiveness”

From Alignment, Implementation and Educational Excellence Presentation at OSEP IDEA Conference 2015

Steve Goodman, Michigan (MiBLSi) & Rob Horner, University of Oregon

6 of 40

What is Integration?

Different parts of a system are made a functional and structural whole
Resources are leveraged to build upon each other

From Alignment, Implementation and Educational Excellence Presentation at OSEP IDEA Conference 2015

Steve Goodman, Michigan (MiBLSi) & Rob Horner, University of Oregon

7 of 40

“It is not the pace of change that is the culprit,

it is the piecemealness

and fragmentation

that wears us down.”

Fullen, 2003

8 of 40

Why Align?

Situation: Increased focus on school climate, social/behavioral health, school safety, and the impact on academic outcomes; resources are limited

Status: Various approaches to promote social-emotional competence that are not sustainable when implemented separately

Often districts have more programs/initiatives/practices than can be implemented well (Domitrovich et al., 2010; Sugai, & Horner, 2006)

Need: Schools must be organized in a manner that is highly strategic, efficient, relevant to school mission and values statement, and effective

9 of 40

When to Align?

Start thinking about alignment while in the exploration phase
Select interventions based on actual need, contextual fit, and evidence base, with an eye toward efficiency and sustainability

PBIS Forum in Brief: Aligning and Integrating Mental Health and PBIS to Build Priority for Wellness (From PBIS Forum Round Table Discussion – December 2017)

10 of 40

PBIS Components

Common purpose statement
Leadership Team
Define 3-5 positively-stated behavioral expectations
Systems for teaching behavioral expectations
Systems for acknowledging behavioral expectations
Systems for discouraging problem behaviors
Data management systems

11 of 40

What are Restorative Practices (RP)?

Proactively build healthy school climates by intentionally creating space for people to understand one another and develop relationships
Meaningful opportunities for social engagement that foster empathy and mutual responsibility for the well-being of individuals and community
When things go wrong, engaging those affected and creating space so individuals and communities can identify, understand, and address harms/needs in order for all to heal

Whole School Restorative Approaches Resource Guide

12 of 40

Big Ideas:

Those who feel connected to their community are less likely to harm,

more likely to want to repair harm when it happens, and more likely to accept consequences.

All members of the community should feel that their “presence is vital to their learning community’s success.”

Highgate's PBIS/RP Document

Whole School Restorative Approaches Resource Guide

13 of 40

Shifting Practices/Policies/Procedures

Reminder: this is a mindset shift for many

14 of 40

Consider 1-2 social/emotional/behavioral interventions you have in place. Where do they fall along the continuum? How might you shift them to be more restorative?

15 of 40

What is Responsive Classroom (RC)?

Evidence-based approach to teaching and discipline
Engaging academics

Active, interactive, meaningful choices

Positive community

Morning Meeting
Shared purpose
Effective teacher language

Effective management

Routines

Developmental awareness

What do you see listed here that links with PBIS and RP?

16 of 40

What is Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)?

Understanding and managing emotions
Setting goals
Showing empathy for others
Establishing positive relationships,
Making responsible decisions
CASEL

How does your school help students & adults develop SEL skills?

17 of 40

What are Trauma-Informed Schools?

Adults in the school are prepared to recognize and respond to those who have been impacted by traumatic stress

Students are provided with clear expectations and communication strategies to guide them through stressful situations. The goal is to not only provide tools to cope with extreme situations but create an underlying culture of respect and support.

Treatment and Services Adaptation Center

What do you see here that links with PBIS, RP, RC, and SEL?

18 of 40

What do you notice about all of these?

Whole-school
Positive
Proactive/prevention-focused
Same end goals in mind

To build a safe, respectful, and productive learning environment
To establish a positive school climate where students and adults have strong, positive relationships and students understand what is expected of them as learners at school

19 of 40

How can they all be aligned/integrated?

20 of 40

Sustainability

21 of 40

Why a Systems Approach?

Ensures practices are implemented as intended (with fidelity)
Ensures consistency across the school

Consider readiness, buy-in, training

Can examine outcomes

22 of 40

How can you embed within academics?

https://www.pbis.org/resource/classroom-integrated-academics-and-behavior-brief

Goal: Weave together academic + behavioral instruction/content into one seamless experience for students
Consider where natural connections exist

i.e. connect behavior expectations to related reading stories that deal with social interactions/values, facilitate a circle on topic of essay before beginning to write

Directly connect behavioral + academic expectations

i.e. describe that being responsible means engaging in class instruction (and what this looks like)

Incorporate proactive + positive behavior supports into lesson planning

i.e. planned prompts and specific praise statements for students for attending, participating and completing academic tasks

23 of 40

Link competencies, sub-competencies, skills, academic curriculum, and school-wide expectations

Anchoring Social-Emotional Wellness Skill Instruction Within Universal Intervention, The Boggs Center on Developmental Disabilities Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 2018-2019

24 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

We really like SEL initiatives!

Safe Healthy Schools in all five schools
PBIS in elementary schools
Restorative Practices in the middle and high schools
Responsive Classroom in elementary schools
Trauma-Informed Practices was introduced to the elementary schools a few years ago in an inservice by Pete Cudney
Mindfulness in all 5 schools (inconsistently implemented)

25 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

How do we put all of those “pieces” together to help students?

Student support services director recognized that consistency and alignment was needed across buildings and personnel
Debunk the myth that PBIS “isn’t working”
Response to teachers advocating for additional support to address the increase in students who have experienced or are experiencing trauma

26 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

A shift in approach…

Student support services director and an elementary principal attended a conference by Joelle van Lent that led to a recognition that what benefits children with trauma benefits all students, and the goal should be increasing resilience for all students.

And so… The Resilient Schools Team was born!

Student support services director created a committee tasked with aligning all of the initiatives and determining how the district could effectively teach SEL in an MTSS model across the district.

27 of 40

South Burlington’s Action Plan

Action Plan

28 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

The team members…

Building principals
Curriculum Area Supervisors from the middle and high school
Teachers
School Counselors
School-Based Clinicians
School Psychologist

The selection process…

Volunteer
Solicit teachers who had been implementing SEL initiatives in their classroom
Roles who work closely with vulnerable students (SBC, school counselors)

29 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

The “How”…

The team met monthly from 12:30-2:30
Substitutes were secured for roles with student responsibilities

The “What”…

A survey to all staff to determine focus areas
Train the trainer model for each building
Guest speakers and trainers at the meetings
Readings to inform the work of committee members

30 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

Survey Says…

Gather baseline data to compare to Year 3 to analyze progress
Resilient Schools Checklist was initially used to identify focus areas and identify current level of knowledge of resilience and trauma-informed practices.
Trauma Responsive School Implementation Assessment was recommended by Joelle and the team decided to adopt this measure as it would better inform the goals of the team. Has not yet been distributed this year.

31 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

Train the Trainer

Step 1: Joelle conducted training in fostering resilience using a series of modules over 9 sessions

Step 2: Participating trainers presented information to all staff at building PD sessions

BONUS: Exit cards from PD sessions indicated that staff found it powerful to be trained by their peers

32 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

Guest stars…

Joelle van Lent - Resilient Schools
Kym Asam - Trauma and PBIS
Lisa Bettinger - Restorative Practices
Mindfulness Committee

33 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

Homework…

34 of 40

South Burlington’s Journey

The Work Continues…

Student Support Services Director will send out the Trauma Responsive School Implementation Assessment to all school personnel this fall
Joelle consults to elementary school Child Advocacy Team monthly
Building-based PD from the team trainers continues this year
Implement Phase 3 of the Action Plan