Example of Interconnected Systems Framework in Action

Post date: Mar 05, 2013 4:26:18 PM

Fourteen districts began partnering with community organizations in or before FY11 and continued to have mental health and/or community representation in planning meetings in FY12.  Each of these districts is at a different point in planning and implementation with some having begun work toward joint trainings, data use across domains and environments, and selection and implementation of evidence-based practices. Some of the highlights from these ISF districts are described below.

SD U-46 continued its alliance with local community agencies and has taken steps to build collaborative relationships between schools and community agencies to expedite student outcomes.  In Fall 2009, a community forum was hosted to articulate the  district’s goal to expand supports and interventions for students and families by forging effective school-agency partnerships.  This work gained momentum in 2010-11 with shared leadership via focused work groups made up of representatives from school/mental health and community agencies.  District-led trainings hosted for agencies to assist with integrating community partners within the existing three-tiered PBIS framework were critical components of this collaboration.  In FY12 these efforts continued with 20 community agencies partnering with SD U-46 by participating on building and district leadership teams.  SD U-46 currently has 12 school building teams with community representatives, up from eight schools last year.  All 12 of these schools had community representatives join Tier 2 Systems teams in FY12 as well.

SD U-46, in partnership with multiple community and mental health agencies, initiated social skills instructional groups for selected students at 12 schools in FY12.  Over fifty individuals from 19 community agencies, such as Centro de Informacion and Crossroads Kids Club, were trained to deliver Social/Academic Instructional Groups (S/AIG). Students on a Tier 2 Check-in Check-out (CICO) intervention (as discussed on page 32) who were not achieving a 70% rate with daily progress reports (DPRs) were identified. Students were placed into social skills instructional groups facilitated by community agencies per identified need and progress.  Progress was monitored with the daily progress report card throughout the 6-8 week group.  Students who were successful moved out of the community agency supported instructional groups back into lower  tiered interventions, and students that continued to show a need accessed higher levels of intervention such as mentoring or function-based support.  Community/mental health agencies will be partnering with the district to provide mentoring in FY13.

Elgin High School utilized community mental health partnerships to expand Tier 2 implementation.  Elgin High School has had CICO in place for two academic years and had over 150 students in the intervention at the beginning of the second semester (January 2012).  Based on teacher input the students were placed into different groups. A total of seven social skills instructional groups were initiated at the beginning of March. Three of these were led by a clinician from Hanover Township Youth and FamilyServices.  The Secondary Systems team, inclusive of agency members, monitored the interventions at the school level with a weekly progress card where teachers provided feedback to the student about behaviors being taught in the groups.  A pre- and post-test to gauge student perception of the intervention was also used.  The data review by the collaborative team is guiding the future direction of the implementation, including moving from instructional groups to group-based mentoring with embedded skill instruction.   They are going to increase communication (between deans and facilitators of interventions) and align initiatives.  Lastly, they are going to explore more intensive interventions for students with unmet mental health needs in FY13.