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  • February 7, 2024

Previously, there was a very limited amount of therapy materials and lesson plans available to support our students’ social-communication and social-emotional learning needs. Everyday Speech, an online subscription, complemented the district’s existing curriculum (“Social Thinking”) by providing district speech language pathologists with access to evidence-based materials for use in individual lessons, small groups, and classroom presentations. These materials could also be shared with parents for home generalization. Everyday Speech gave PreK-12 educators access to a full curriculum of materials, including social skill modeling videos, handouts, interactive activities, and the capability to assign homework and share materials with families.

In relation to the core curriculum, the project expanded learning opportunities for students in a creative and innovative way. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an increased need for supporting our students’ social-emotional health and well-being. Addressing our students’ social-emotional needs led to a reduction in aggressive behaviors and promoted a more positive school environment for everyone. Everyday Speech offered creative and innovative ways to learn social-emotional and social communication skills by providing lessons through various modalities, ensuring that all types of learners could benefit.

  • February 7, 2024

This is a community partnership grant to bring best-selling author Julie Lythcott-Haims to speak to our community. Dr. Lythcott-Haims, a former dean of freshman students at Stanford University, shared insights from her New York Times best-selling book, “How to Raise an Adult.” Drawing on research, conversations with admissions officers, educators, and employers, and on her own insights as a mother and as a student dean, Julie highlighted the ways in which over-parenting harms children and prevents them from developing self-efficacy: the knowledge that one’s own actions lead to outcomes.

While empathizing with the parental hopes and, especially, fears that lead to over-helping, Julie offered practical strategies that underlined the importance of allowing children to make their own mistakes and develop the resilience, resourcefulness, and inner determination necessary to become healthy, thriving adults.

These topics were the exact struggles that many of us dealt with every day as parents when trying to raise our families in a world where their mental health seemed to be challenged on a daily basis. Our community and, therefore, our students, benefited from hearing her perspective.

  • February 7, 2024

The “Scaling up Decodable Text” grant allowed each K-2 teacher to have their own set of decodable texts to use with their students. Previously, teachers were sharing one set per grade level, which was challenging because the books weren’t always easily accessible when a teacher needed them, and they required a lot of advanced planning. With each teacher having their own set, they saved time and were able to be more responsive in the moment within small group instruction, as well as better match readers with the most suitable book.

The grant provided each K-2 teacher and student with access to books that were engaging, diverse, and decodable. Students received small group instruction and time to practice reading these books that highlighted the specific phonics skill they needed. Teachers could differentiate by matching kids to the book and skill they needed to work on. In the core curriculum, while teachers explicitly taught phonics, kids also needed practice reading books with those specific phonics skills in them. Decodable books gave kids the opportunity to do just that. The Jump Rope Reader series had taken what could be a very boring type of book and created creative storylines, engaging characters, and books that kids really enjoyed.

  • February 7, 2024

Saline Live, a group of volunteers outside the school system with the necessary technical expertise and training, worked with the student’s family to identify their situation and needs. Saline Live assessed the options available to the family to provide access and the resources available to help reduce the financial burden if needed. The volunteers from Saline Live then collaborated with the service providers (ISPs), financial providers, and the family to install and activate access for that family. Once access was provided, Saline Live continued its relationship with the family to offer technical assistance and support when challenges arose.

This grant bridged the gap while discussions and decisions were made about the best options to ensure the grant’s continuation in perpetuity.

  • February 7, 2024

The grant provided support for students experiencing acute mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety, by facilitating weekly one-on-one sessions with a licensed Master Clinical therapist. The initiative aimed to alleviate common barriers that students and their families often encounter when seeking mental health support, including limited access, financial constraints, and transportation difficulties. In addition to the therapeutic sessions, the grant also funded classes for students not currently experiencing mental health issues, educating them on the early signs of mental illness.

The grant addressed the concern that many students were unable to achieve the Compass Attributes, which are essential for success in the academic environment, due to mental health challenges. By offering professional mental health support, the grant helped students develop the necessary skills to improve their attendance and function more effectively within the academic setting.