What makes your team work so well?  Please discuss in detail (e.g., what is your administrator’s role on the team, how is staff represented, etc.)? Our team is comprised of classroom teachers, paraprofessionals, reading and math coaches, a district-level behavior analyst, our ESE Chair, and our principal and assistant principal. Each member of our team has a defined role, and has demonstrated commitment by following through on assigned tasks.  We trust and rely on one another. We begin each meeting with an agenda, which is followed precisely, and we honor one another’s time by closing sessions in a timely manner. We make it a point to celebrate our successes, and we work collaboratively to address our challenges. We have established group norms, and we seek input from all members. Our administrators have been actively involved in PBS implementation from its inception.  Particularly, they have been instrumental in providing guidance on how best to address issues that arise from our PBS feedback box (which is available to school personnel and parents). Our school principal has attended every PBS Core Team meeting and has been invaluable in ensuring that the school community is informed and active.

How does your team use data to make decisions on campus? Our discipline data is examined bi-weekly to identify trends and develop appropriate interventions.   We seek input from all stakeholders when designing interventions to ensure buy-in and increase the fidelity of implementation. The following are examples of ways we use data to improve systems. We found a strong correlation between the teachers with the highest frequency of referrals and their classroom management systems.  Our administrators and coaches mentored these teachers through processes which led to establishing routines and procedures, designing engaging lessons, incorporating positive classroom management practices, and providing consistent and frequent positive (constructive) feedback. We also noted that a majority of the referrals generated from misbehavior in the cafeteria.  Typically lunch time is unstructured time.  Realizing students’ socialization needs, we polled students and teachers to determine appropriate interventions based on their likes and dislikes.  Based on this feedback, we designed three cafeteria reward systems.

1. Famous Falcon Leaders (class falcon bucks) – Collectively, every class is eligible to earn a maximum of three falcon bucks for demonstrating “SOAR” behavior when entering the cafeteria, eating and cleaning area, and lining up.  The class bucks are recorded daily, and at the end of the week, winning classes eat in the café, a designated area that is separate and designed to represent a real eatery.
2. Daily video – We use our CAVS system to broadcast student-selected programming, and slide shows featuring pictures from school activities, during the lunch periods.
3. Extra recess – classes who behaved appropriately were rewarded with extra recess after the class finished eating.  (A paraprofessional and a site maintenance worker volunteered to assist us in monitoring the extra recess period!)

These interventions decreased our lunch referrals significantly. Finally, we examined grades and assessment scores of students with the highest referral rates. Trend data indicated that 92% of the students performed poorly on assessments.  All of the children grappled with various social challenges, including but not limited to, lack of or improper medication dosages, family dilemmas, including divorce/separation, homelessness, drug abuse, HIV and other illnesses. ESOL-related deficiencies and various disabilities were also factors for some students. To address students’ social needs, we enlisted the services of district behavior analysts and techs, and our school social worker, and coordinated services with local mental health agencies.  These students received Behavior Intervention Plans based on data collected from conducting Functional Behavioral Assessments. Some students were paired with a “check-in” buddy who encouraged them and tracked their successes as well as their challenges. For their academic needs, we referred for appropriate assessments, enrolled students in our after school tutorial program, Read 180, and paired them with paraprofessionals for one-on-one intensive instruction. Most of the students made academic gains, as evidenced by increases in benchmark, SRI, DIBELS, and SAT 10 score reports, as well as teacher feedback.

How do you share information with the rest of your faculty (e.g., emails, newsletters, meetings, etc.)?  How often do you share this information? At Lakewood Park, all members of our community are valued.  Information about our PBS program is eagerly shared upon request.  We promote events on our school website and in the community’s weekly newspaper. The media has been an invaluable resource.  Our principal has been featured in a number of articles that have highlighted our celebrations of students who make good choices and demonstrate “SOAR” both academically and behaviorally. Formally, our staff is informed about discipline data monthly via email.  Teachers receive weekly feedback on their overall class cafeteria behavior when data is reported for our Famous Falcon Leaders. Charts and graphs are kept in our PBS product book which is located in our book room and available to all staff. Data is also shared monthly during our SAC and PTO meetings. 

What do you see as the overall strengths of your team?  Please provide details. Our team is strong because we work collaboratively toward a common goal- to ensure that we meet the needs of every child, every day.  We truly aim for academic excellence and we want to reach the goal of 100% proficiency.  The correlation between student behavior and academic success drives us to extinguish all hindrances to academic excellence.  This is our mission. We want to establish a school culture that parallels a five-star hotel where teachers want to teach and students want to learn. In all of our actions, we strive to ensure that our school is a positive place where everyone feels welcome and a part of the school community.  PBS has enabled us to come closer than ever to realizing this dream.  Our team is strong because we have a defined mission and by enlisting the tenets of the PBS framework, we a clear pathway.  Each one of us is committed, focused, and willing to do whatever it takes.   We make copies. We cut the falcon bucks.  We participate in running and stocking the quarterly PBS store. We provide the trainings and refresher sessions for students and teacher. We solicit funding from sponsors to provide rewards and incentives for our students. We are visible and available to the staff and students to answer questions and offer guidance.  We encourage and redirect students. We collaborate. We celebrate. We are a team.

In what areas of PBS does your team excel (e.g., rewarding students/staff, teaching expectations, data-based decision-making, etc.)?  Please provide details below. Our team excels in many areas, remarkably, given this is our first year of implementation.  One of our strengths lies in teaching our SOAR (Safety first, Outstanding problem-solver, Act responsibly, Respect for all) expectations.  At the beginning of the year, and at the second semester, we designed PBS stations throughout the school.  We instructed and modeled appropriate hallway behavior using the acronym FAME (Face forward, Arms behind your back-at your side, Mouth closed, Eyes forward).  Both examples and non-examples were demonstrated. This trend continued as we informed students of behavioral expectations in the cafeteria, on the playground, and in the bus loading zone. The SOAR acronym was reinforced in the classrooms and in the office when addressing discipline referrals.  Students were asked to identify the SOAR behavior they defied. We also have an astonishing reward system, including:
STUDENTS

• Lunch recognitions (Famous Falcon Leaders)
• Extra recess
• Ice cream parties
• Lunch with an administrator
• Movie days
• Socials (dances)
• Holiday toys (donated by our retirement communities)
• Spring baskets (donated by our retirements communities)
• Daily treasure chest (Tiers 2&3)
• Quarterly PBS store (PreK & K weekly)
• Bi-annual raffle (big ticket items including bicycles and Game Boys)
• Year end carnival with bounce houses, DJ, games, prizes, face painting, snacks, and more (compliments of PTO)

TEACHERS

• Weekly recognition for outstanding class behavior (Famous Falcon Leaders)
• Extra recess – extra time for teachers since other staff monitors class
• Massage & spa treatment
• Gift certificates
• Recognition/affirmations from administration
•  Professional car wash on campus (compliments of PTO)

Discuss the changes you have seen on campus since PBS implementation (e.g., data, climate, morale, etc.). Our discipline referrals have drastically declined.  On average, the decrease rate is over 60%.  This has allowed administrators to identify and address the needs of Tier 2 and Tier 3 students.  Because of training and common language (SOAR), we have streamlined our expectations and teachers are better equipped to manage student behavior in their classrooms, resulting in negative behavior decrease and academic increase. Collaboration between teachers has improved.  Teachers are working together to give students time outs when needed in lieu of generating office referrals, freeing administrators to work closer with students, teachers and families to bridge gaps and design effective interventions. All of this has led to improved school climate and increased staff morale.  Recent school climate surveys indicated overall satisfaction from parents and staff. Profound support from our PTO is another indicator of parent approval.  Our parents can be seen daily in various parts of the school tutoring students, assisting in the cafeteria, substitute teaching, making copies for teachers, proctoring tests, and serving at various school-sponsored functions.  They want to be involved!  And our teachers want to teach!  Teacher attendance rates have improved by over 70%. Students aide one another in following our SOAR expectations, and they are acknowledged when this happens.  New students, even those with poor histories, quickly adjust to our expectations.  At Lakewood Park, we expect our students to learn every day, and every stakeholder recognizes the importance of maximizing every moment.

What are some obstacles that your team has had to overcome?  Please explain the process for overcoming these hurdles below. Perhaps the biggest obstacle we faced was a few students’ misinterpretation of the purpose of falcon bucks.  They wanted to use them as capital which can be traded for commodities. This minute sample wanted to amass falcon bucks so that they could improve their chances of participating in the various activities by trading for them instead of earning them. We overcame this hurdle by establishing a banking system. When students earned falcon bucks, they handed them to their teacher who deposited them and kept track of their balance.  Students were given a copy of every deposit and withdrawal they made, so it was tied to academics.  This virtually erased the system as bucks that were not earned or could not be verified had no relevance.