{"id":138316,"date":"2018-05-31T12:37:23","date_gmt":"2018-05-31T16:37:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?post_type=school-college-post&p=138316"},"modified":"2018-06-01T08:54:00","modified_gmt":"2018-06-01T12:54:00","slug":"george-sugai-joins-federal-commission-school-safety-field-visit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2018\/05\/george-sugai-joins-federal-commission-school-safety-field-visit\/","title":{"rendered":"George Sugai Joins Federal Commission on School Safety Field Visit"},"content":{"rendered":"

This morning, Neag School Professor George Sugai<\/a>, an expert in positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), was invited to speak about\u00a0PBIS and improving school climate with representatives from the\u00a0U.S. Department of Education<\/a>\u2019s Federal Commission on School Safety, who made a field visit to an elementary school in Maryland\u2019s Anne Arundel County<\/a> to learn more about the impact of implementing PBIS practices.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

Sugai, as well as administrators, teachers, and students from the Anne Arundel County public school district, each shared with Commission representatives insight into PBIS during a panel discussion.<\/p>\n

Sugai shared some background information about PBIS as well as the national Center of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports<\/a>, for which he serves as co-director. Currently, there are 26,000 schools nationwide that call themselves PBIS schools and that are working toward improving school climate, relationship building, and connectedness, Sugai said.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cOne thing we\u2019re learning is that schools that have a positive school climate are able to respond more quickly and more strategically to traumatic events.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Professor George Sugai<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cOne of the outcomes [of PBIS] is that the school builds a continuum of support. What that means is that all kids get what they need, but some kids need a little extra. And a few kids need something that is more individualized,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you do PBIS well, these are the outcomes: You\u2019re likely to see decreases in discipline referrals for major infractions; you\u2019re likely to see decreases in bullying; you\u2019re likely to see increases in organizational health and school climate. \u2026 The [PBIS] framework allows those outcomes to become real. The framework is really about helping the adults get to those kinds of outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n

He then fielded questions from Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, as well as other representatives from the Commission. Questions touched on the flexibility of PBIS implementation and the prevalence of PBIS in schools across the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing we\u2019re learning is that schools that have a positive school climate are able to respond more quickly and more strategically to traumatic events,\u201d Sugai said.<\/p>\n

Virginia Dolan, coordinator of behavioral supports and interventions at Anne Arundel County Public Schools, also among those serving on the panel, spoke about Sugai\u2019s involvement and the evolution of PBIS in the Anne Arundel County\u2019s schools.<\/p>\n

\u201cGeorge taught us about implementation science \u2014 that it takes three to five years. For five years, he came every summer and trained teams,\u201d Dolan told the Commission. \u201cAlmost 18 years later, we have over 1,000 schools trained. In Anne Arundel County, we have 80 schools and growing \u2014\u00a0This summer, we will be training another five. We have pre-K programs, middle and high schools, and alternative schools that are trained in [PBIS] implementation. It\u2019s like building a house; inside every house is different. That\u2019s how we establish PBIS. Every school has a team leader and a coach who guides the team and establishes a set of expectations. \u2026 We\u2019ve built these structures over a long period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to a news release<\/a> issued by the U.S. Department of Education, the field visit will serve as the first of several more to be made by the Commission over the coming months, focused on learning from practitioners in the field about improving school safety and school climate.<\/p>\n

Sugai is a professor of special education in the Neag School and a research scientist for the Center for Behavioral Education and Research<\/a> (CBER), which conducts and disseminates research that seeks to improve educational and social outcomes for all children and youth in schools in the areas of PBIS, behavior disorders, literacy, school psychology, and special education. He also serves as co-director of the nationalCenter of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports<\/a>, established by the U.S. Department of Education\u2019s Office of Special Education Programs.<\/p>\n

Access the U.S. Department of Education news release about the field visit<\/a>. Watch the online stream of the panel discussion here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Related Stories: <\/strong><\/p>\n