What connections make Maine PBIS work?
The critical need to develop integrated systems of supports that can maximize the efficient use of limited resources toward building sustainable services is well recognized. Maine PBIS is situated within international, national, regional and state level networks all working towards a common goal- to improve the social, emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes of ALL students.
The mission of the Association for Positive Behavior Support (APBS) is to enhance the quality of life of people, across the life-span, by promoting evidence-based and effective positive behavior support to realize socially valid and equitable outcomes for people, families, schools, agencies, and communities. Maine PBIS members attend and present at the annual international conference put on by APBS and serve on committees to further the work of APBS.
The Center on PBIS, funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), provides ongoing support to schools, districts, and states. Maine PBIS contributes to and utilizes the resources and shared information distributed by the TA Center to build capacity throughout Maine.
Maine’s work has been recognized by the Center as a model for a collaborative state-frunded project matching university-based PBIS trainers with school level implementers in a rural setting.
The primary goal of the Northeast PBIS Network is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of PBIS implementation in schools and districts within the northeast states by enabling communications, information exchange, political visibility, technical assistance, and professional bridge to APBS. Maine PBIS members serve on the advisory board for this network and have received training from NEPBIS Network programs.
How is PBIS being implemented in Maine?
PBIS implementation continues to gain momentum and interest throughout Maine.
There is a high demand for PBIS training and support throughout Maine as schools continue to request PBIS implementation technical assistance.
The Maine Department of Education and the University of Maine System entered into a cooperative agreement in 2016. This collaboration funds faculty members from the University of Maine (UM) and University of Southern Maine (USM) to allocate 50% of their time to providing professional development to 10 districts and more than 25 schools.
Additionally, in 2017, faculty members and doctoral students from UMaine were awarded a three-year grant through the Maine DOE’s Fund for the Efficient Delivery of Educational Services (FEDES) to provide Tier 1 Schoolwide PBIS to 15 schools through a cohort-based delivery model.
Finally, many schools use other resources, such as their Title II and Title IV funds, to hire independent consultants for professional development, training, and technical assistance support.
How do I get PBIS in my school?
It is important to remember that PBIS is not a packaged curriculum or program. Implementing PBIS in your school requires intensive professional development, teaming and training for sustainable systematic change to occur. Simply creating a school-wide behavior matrix will not improve the social, emotional and behavioral outcomes of your students. If you want to learn more about getting started, contact any of the Maine PBIS Team members found on our Contact Us page.
How do we know this works?
A growing evidence base demonstrates that academic achievement, social/behavioral development, and mental health are intertwined and occur in concert rather than separately. The National Technical Assistance Center on PBIS is continuously sharing the latest research and evidence that PBIS makes a positive impact on schools, students and staff.
Schools that are implementing PBIS undergo progress monitoring by developing an evaluation plan to ensure that they are implementing with fidelity and achieving their desired outcomes. Multiple surveys are available through PBIS Assessment.
Surveys currently being used in Maine schools include:
Tiered Fidelity Inventory (TFI)
School-wide Evaluation Tool (SET)
School Climate Surveys
Team Implementation Checklist (TIC)
Monitoring Advanced Tiers Tool (MATT)
The goal of these surveys is to aid school teams in implementation efforts, data-based decision making, and action planning. In other words, “Are we doing what we said we would be doing?” and “Is it working?”
Schools are also encouraged to use the SWIS (School-wide Information System) Suite to gather, analyze and utilize student behavioral data for decision-making. Monitoring student behavior is another way that school teams evaluate if PBIS implementation is working effectively.