As a response to feeling unseen and a sense of confusion from staff about our model of inclusion at Learning without Limits (LWL), Student Support Services Coordinator Katie Ruffman and I decided to write weekly blog updates on the work that the Special Education staff, also named the Learning Lab Team, at LWL was doing. We specifically wanted to highlight the work that the Learning Lab Team covered in our monthly meetings that we felt was important to share out and norm on as a whole school. We called them Learning Lab Blasts! Our first two posts have included information about positive breaks and how we respond to property destruction. The latest blog post that you can read below is about what general education staff can do when they see a crisis occurring. This is a resource that I wanted to share out because when a student is in crisis, it is easy for folks outside of the special education team to feel like “a deer in headlights,” or respond in a way that can intensify the crisis.
 
Here are some helpful tips that I hope you can share with your school communities so that folks are normed on how to support during a crisis.

Using the visual above, we can look at different stages of an escalation. When a student is at baseline, they are relatively calm, able to have rational thoughts, and are able to access their education. For every student, their baseline looks different, and we would consider this state as “ready to learn.” Then we move into the early escalation and escalation phases. These are times where the student may still be able to access some levels of rational thinking, but their emotions are starting to heighten, and behaviors can occur. This can look obvious, such as a student yelling at a peer or leaving class; or can be more subtle, like rocking in their chair continuously or tapping their foot. We want to be vigilant of signs like these to make sure the student does not reach the crisis phase and can move back toward baseline. However, this is not always possible, and if unable to de-escalate, students reach a crisis phase. This is the state in which a child loses control, rational thinking is none to little, and emotions are heightened. Their nervous systems are in fight, flight or freeze mode. This is where you may see students exhibiting tantrums like behaviors, voicing extreme verbal threats towards themselves or others, becoming physical with themselves or others, doing other things that are unsafe like climbing fences, throwing objects or even making suicidal comments. A crisis is a very sensitive time for students and, thus, we as a school community need to be aware of best practices when witnessing a student in this very delicate and should-be-private time. The last pieces on this graph, de-escalation and reintegration (restoration), will be covered in the next Learning Lab Blast – so keep an eye out for it if you want to learn more!

​If the child is being supported by a counselor or administrator, then you may think that they got it covered and do not need any additional support. However, this is not always the case. If you have ever witnessed a student in crisis, you probably notice it is not usually a moment that feels very private; often because the behaviors exhibited can include yelling, property destruction and any number of behaviors that would naturally draw attention to the child. This leads to the first and most important action you can do in order to make this moment of crisis feel a little more contained for the student.

Clearing the surrounding area
A student in crisis is not a show, and the best thing that you can do is clear students and families from the area. If the students or families are expressing concern, that is perfectly normal, and you can validate those feelings as well as reassure them that there are folks with the appropriate training to support these students and that they are safe. If there are additional comments or concerns that they would like to discuss, you can direct them to the front office to talk about next steps - without the student being able to hear.

Do not engage with the student
When a student is in crisis, all rational goes out of the window and they are only able to hear very short (5 words or less) directions coming from one person, known as crisis communication. It may feel supportive to reinforce the directions being given to the student by the adult with them, but this can often lead to confusion for the student or even make you a target of their behaviors. It is best to let the primary respondent take the lead.

Ask the adult if they need additional support
If you feel like the adult needs support, you can ask the adult if they would like for you to notify the office or administration for additional support. Realize – you do not need to support directly to be helpful.

If the child in crisis is unsupported, your main objective should be to make sure that the student stays safe by keeping eyes on them and immediately contacting the front office, administration, or a Learning Lab team member for support. If you need to engage with the child to ensure their safety, it is important that you follow these guidelines.

Use brief language
As mentioned above, a student in crisis is unable to process many words at a time. When communicating, it is imperative that you can state directions in 5 words or less. Example: “put the chair down.” This crisis communication should be used in the case that the student is doing things that have the possibility to cause imminent harm to them or other students while you are keeping eyes on them. Otherwise, if for example, they are just yelling and screaming in the yard but not posing a threat to those around them or themselves, you can just keep your eyes on the student and call for support.
 
Caveat: If you are a teacher or other staff that is highly familiar with the student and their plan, please feel empowered to use crisis communication and try to de-escalate the child while waiting on further support

Don’t talk about consequences
The main focus in a crisis moment is to get the student to a de-escalation stage, not to let them know about their consequences. Following an escalation, there will always be a key reflect, restore and reintegration piece, but that is only talked about when the student is back at baseline. Talking about consequences in the moment, or, for example, using language around important people in their lives being “disappointed.” tends to only exacerbate the situation. Remember: the key focus is to get the student back to baseline and in a state of relative control.
 
I hope this was helpful and empowers you to feel more able to support our students in crisis!

Name: Kaelyn Hosokawa
Position: Student Support Assistant (SSA) at Learning Without Limits
What led you to your current position? In college, I became really passionate about fighting social injustices and have always been passionate about mental health; plus I love working with kids! I felt that the All-In! Program gave me the opportunity to help individuals gain the skills and resources needed to be successful while allowing me to fight inequality and oppressive systems.
Quote: "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." - Nelson Mandela
This quote is highly related to the work that we do.  Every day, we show up to work finding new creative ways to help our students access education. We are supporting them in gaining the tools they need to change the world!
What does your average day look like?  On my way to school, I listen to my current favorite playlist to help me get mentally prepared for the day. When I arrive at school, I grab a walkie-talkie and check in with my team. I live in the world of second grade. I mainly work with three students in the second grade supporting them in gaining the self-regulatory skills necessary to be successful in the general education classroom. I also support them in navigating social interactions with peers and adults. I see one of my students once a week for a social skills group, and we utilize different art projects to work on self-regulatory skills. I also try to sprinkle in music throughout my students’ days, especially during positive breaks! Whenever I have extra time, I make my way up to the 4/5 hallway and support our older students. I end my day in the learning lab with collaboration, documentation and meetings.
Why do you do this work? I do this work to promote inclusivity, to advocate for those who do not have the opportunity to speak up for themselves, and to empower others!

Happy February! It's hard to believe that the school year is more than halfway over. Time flies when you're having fun, right? At this time of year, we like to take a breath, step back and ask our partners for feedback on how things are going within our partnerships. The UE Mid-Year Survey is conducted through the month of January and gives us a good read on how things are going. This feedback highlights our successes and areas for improvement, helping us to focus our intentions through the end of the year. 

This year, our surveys yielded some exciting feedback about our partnerships so far. The first highlight we saw in the data spoke to the development of both our practices over time and how we have embedded ourselves in the schools we are partnered with. We saw an increase in the number of schools that participated in the survey from 69% in 2019 to 97% this year with over 500 individual respondents! #Together
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The Mid-Year Partnership Survey asks our partners how we are doing with components of the UE Model related to Culture and Climate, Direct Services and Progress Reporting. For students receiving direct services at our school sites we asked our partners two questions: 

• ​If they found the provider(s) of these interventions to be professional and collaborative
• If the providers were knowledgeable and skillful in helping them to implement classroom interventions to support students receiving this service

Last year, both questions averaged above our minimum goal of 80%, but this year we saw an even higher level of satisfaction from providers with 96% and 90% of the 284 respondents with students receiving direct services agreeing with these statements respectively!

As one of the three main program goals for the 2019-2020 school year, data collection and progress reporting has been on everyone's minds this year. A lot of time, effort and attention has been given this year across our Academic, Behavioral and Clinical teams to develop and implement effective, meaningful practices within their partnership sites. At this mid-year point, we were curious if progress and outcome reports were shared and used for collaboration during meetings with service providers and found that 73% of respondents agreed that they were! While the goal for the year is at least 80% agreement, we celebrate that this is up from 68% this time last year and embrace this forward momentum headed into the second half of the year. #Datatellsastory​

All these numbers, while exciting and informative, don't tell the whole story. We also ask our partners for specific feedback and suggestions on how we collaborate and support the growth of our partnerships. This year, aside from being overwhelmingly positive, we noticed a very interesting shift in the qualitative feedback we received. There was a very clear trend this year of school staff expressing a desire for continued collaboration and progress sharing so that they are more able to support the growth of their students. We love seeing this constructive feedback, as it exemplifies the mindset that we are trying to build at partnerships schools, that all students are the responsibility of all staff. #Twofer​

We are looking forward to hearing from all our partners again during our End-of-Year Partnership Survey. Without feedback and collaboration from our partners, we couldn't do what we set out to do. While we wait, here are some more partnership highlights from the year so far #Together:

​  From Wikipedia’s description of clinical supervision: 

So much of what our school-based therapists do is not visible to others.  Recently a colleague asked, “What do you do in [group] supervision, actually?”  Great question!  
 
In individual supervision, the clinician typically brings areas they are struggling with in their work or successes they’d like to share.  They check in about required paperwork needs, professional development goals and the logistics of the work, and spend most of the time talking about their caseload, ethical issues and intervention plans. Supervisors are always listening for risk and safety issues for clients and making sure that the clinician is monitoring their clients’ safety in addition to their treatment goals. The relationship between supervisor and supervisee is attended to, discussed, and feedback is invited in both directions to enhance the quality of the relationship.
 
In a group supervision, up to eight therapists gather to learn from one another.  With eight therapists and only two hours, we rarely have enough time to get to everyone’s clients, so the group prioritizes together how to use their time. The therapists identify themes in their work and talk through strategies for understanding their clients and responding to them.  Every school year, each of our therapists spends between three and four hours across several groups to do a deep dive into their work with a chosen client.  Their colleagues listen, ask questions and offer reflections to help move the therapist forward in their work. At times we read and discuss articles, watch videos or welcome a trainer into the group supervision to further develop clinical practice.  Supervisors are always monitoring for safety concerns and making sure clients are always getting the best care. Experiential supervisions are some of my favorites -- that’s when we bring in interventions like play therapy techniques or art therapy activities and we try them out together.
 
Once our therapists achieve licensure (usually they’re required to have had at least 3000 hours of supervised experience before taking their exam), we continue using a similar supervision model to support their growth. In All-In!, our licensed therapists have the option of joining a “consultation group” instead of continuing in a supervision group.  The consultation group is peer-led and gives licensed clinicians the chance to practice facilitating group supervision and supporting one another.  For those who are interested in becoming clinical supervisors themselves, this consultation group is a chance to practice clinical leadership.
 
The goal of clinical supervision is to not only enhance and develop therapists’ clinical skills but also to further their professional development. 
 
Thanks for reading!

Name: Julie Kim
Position: Assistant Director SOAPS/All In
What led you to your current position?  I was transitioning from a Clinical Supervisor position at the Mosaic program, when my current supervisor Adeya Byrd (who I had worked with when I first started at Seneca) presented me with an opportunity to work with her again in SOAPS. It was perfect timing and I jumped on board!
Fun Fact/Quote: Hafa adai!  I was raised on Guam and came to the states for college.  (Any other Guamanians or Chamorus out there??)
What does your average day look like?  Checking my calendar constantly to make sure I am where I should be, as it shifts and shifts: meeting with the clinicians I supervise across the OUSD/AUSD landscape is one of my favorite times of the day, consulting with school, district partners, and Seneca folks via phone or in person, attending class or school events, communicating with families about their concerns and questions and planning for our program in the midst of handling documentation and other program tasks.  I also enjoy ending my days (when I can) at my home site where I check in with my director and program manager.
Why do you do this work? It reaffirms my values about the beauty of life, even in the midst of the most difficult and painful experiences life has to offer.  It helps remind me that we laugh, we connect, and we support one another no matter what has or may happen.  It has helped me make sense of my own experiences and values.   As I do this work, it helps me evolve in my role as a person, daughter, mother, partner, community member, and global citizen.  I have also met the most inspirational people as I do this work and am continually amazed that there are more and more of them out there!

Charter schools in Washington have only been around for a handful of years, and have had more than their fair share of controversy. Now educators, families, communities, and politicians are anxiously watching to see how all of this rolls out. One of those schools is Rainier Valley Leadership Academy. RVLA is a public charter school in the South Seattle area. Opened in August of 2017, they started with an inaugural sixth grade class, and are now up to tenth grade. By the 2021-2022 RVLA will be open to all students in 6th-12th grades. The current student body is made up of 76% Black, 9% Hispanic and Latino, 3% Asian, 2% White, and 3% identify with other races.
 
Originally started as part of the Green Dot Public Schools network, RVLA had the backing of a nationwide network of schools. The mission of Green Dot “is to help transform public education so that all young adults receive the education they deserve to be prepared for college, leadership, and life.” As of a couple of weeks ago, the Washington State Charter Commission approved for RVLA to make changes to their charter contract to separate from Green Dot and become a standalone community centered school.
 
While Rainier Valley Leadership Academy may be a relatively new school, the community it is located within is not. And that is exactly what the current leadership of RVLA is weaving into its fabric. Shifting the main focus from college, the future of the school will be community driven, scholar led, and leadership focused. School staff want their families and scholars to be prepared for the future of their choice. If they want to go to college, scholars will they have the skills to succeed; if they want to be an artist, a mechanic, or an esthetician, scholars who graduate from RVLA will have the skills to pursue their passions.
 
Transitioning from Green Dot Public Schools to an independent stand-alone community-based school while simultaneously continuing to educate scholars is no small feat. After the 2019-2020 school year, there will no longer be a centralized office. In place of that, there will be dual leadership that reports to the board: a Principal as the head of academics and a Head of Schools as the head of Development and HR. There is also a stakeholder group made up of families, students, staff, and community members to help guide the transition. Through the Seneca partnership, the school is working towards having cohesive systems and clear data to support their scholars with academics, social emotional learning, and behavior.
 
RVLA staff and educators are also actively working to decolonize the curriculum. Racism is systemic, and schools are not exempt from this system. To address this, RVLA is taking a critical look at its curriculum and making changes to the way they are educating scholars. Instead of focusing Black History Month on slavery, scholars learn about Black leaders. Instead of celebrating Christopher Columbus Day, scholars are challenged to think critically about the impacts of Christopher Columbus.
 
As the manager of the Seneca and RVLA partnership, I look forward to seeing how RVLA defines the term community. To get the community to hear the vision of the school, RVLA is attempting to develop their vision with ALL families as their audience.

I have worked in the K-12 education world for almost 8 years now and have put much thought about how to best apply antiracist practices to the work we do. "Antiracism is the active process of identifying and eliminating racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies and practices and attitudes, so that power is redistributed and shared equitably," says NAC International Perspectives: Women and Global Solidarity. An antiracist’s work goes beyond not being racist and dives into the work to dismantle the imbalance of power between white folks and people of color (POC). While racism is the pool we swim in, we have the collective responsibility to continuously dry ourselves up. Each one of us must look at the impact of our practices, attitudes, and way of doing things. We must look at ourselves in the mirror; the mirror that, at times, could be a moment when someone offers the gift of feedback about your behavior or practice to better support antiracism. However, I am not claiming that white folks and POC have equal responsibility to undue racism. That is a monumental distinction that I would need to write another blog entry in order to do it justice. Antiracist acts are also intentional opposition to racist aspects of a system or an organization. 

I recently had an intellectually stimulating conversation with my Seneca supervisor about the use of the word grit in education. According to Michigan State University, grit is defined as “courage, strength of character and showing perseverance.” While having grit is an admirable quality, it is also not something you should always ask of everyone. How do we think holistically about a student who is expected to show grit through an academic task if their parent has just passed away, or a close family member sent to prison? Wouldn’t it be a holistic approach to ask the student “how are you feeling?” and “what do you need to be here and persevere?” People of color are often used to systems asking them to preserve regardless of what they might be going through. It is not that far from the maxim, “pick yourself up by your bootstraps.” At times, the overuse of grit could also be presented as high expectations. Students need and deserve high expectations from educators and families, yet they also need their needs met before they can operate at their best.
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As I begin my work with Seneca at Rainier Valley Leadership Academy Middle and High School, I am working to unlearn the practices of an oppressive system that often goes unexamined, while also learning new ways to be antiracist. I am not working to be antiracist because I want to be a good person; I am working to be an antiracist educator because our students deserve it and I want to see a world where I am not having to assimilate or switch codes. As a person of color, I am tired of all the years I saw systems and practices go unquestioned. The least we can collectively do is question whose perspective influenced the systems around us and learn about the experiences of folks who did not influence the system.

Name: Emily Dunk
Position: Behavior Intervention Specialist 
What led you to your current position? My Senecan journey began a little over a year ago when I moved from Wisconsin to Washington to work at a Charter School as a Student Support Counselor. While there I was lucky enough to be surrounded by an amazing group of fellow Senecans who taught, guided, and supported me as a grew professionally and personally. This year as a Behavioral Intervention Specialist I have been able to step out of my comfort zone as part of the CrossCOST Team!
Fun Fact/Quote: We are changing the world of tomorrow by serving the children of today.
What does your average day look like? I don’t believe anyone on the CrossCOST Team has an average day exactly! As part of our job, we get to serve many schools and students at one time and sometimes even in the same day. What does stay consistent however, is our passion to serving our communities every day. Whether we are working on systems, student plans, or classroom implementation support, we are there for every challenge and success.
Why do you do this work? I do this work because I truly enjoy almost every day! My job is a delightful mixture of organization, communications, direct care, design, coaching, and whatever else our clients need. I get to meet and work with an abundance of dedicated and experienced people all trying to better their schools, classrooms, and students. Every day is a new chance and challenge to better our practice!

Name: Davonte Wilson
Position: Behavioral Support Specialist at Caliber beta academy
What led you to your current position? I started my journey within Seneca working as a Mental Health Counselor at James Baldwin Academy. I really enjoyed my time there and learned so much about the students we serve. As I finished my Masters degree I wanted to learn more about the overall functioning of the agency, which lead me to our human resources department. My time as a senior recruiter within the agency provided me with an understanding of the work that takes place on the back end and confidence to have tough conversations on many different levels as it related to the extremely talented folks we bring into the agency. During some point I attended a career fair with a long time All-In staff person and she told me this’ “representation is important in the classroom”. After that conversation I started to consider my place within the agency and where I would make the greatest impact, which brought me right back to direct care.
Fun Fact: I started writing poetry in 7th grade and its something I continue to do. 
What does your average day look like? My average day starts with me leading a check in with a very interesting 5th grader,  We discuss his goals for the day and of course he explains his lunch that particular day which often includes a pickle sandwich. From there I make my way into one of the fourth grade classrooms where I collaborate with 1 of 2 paraprofessionals I help coach. From there I typically float between the 4th and 5th grade classrooms.  
Why do you do this work? The work is fun! Having the ability to support students who are struggling in many different areas is challenging but also super rewarding.