2024 Dakota Ridge Training Part 1

Right. Let's share what you know.

I think many of you, probably all of you

probably know students who have attended

or do attend or may attend in the future

at Dakota Ridge.

And um, no two students as you know,

have are nothing, nothing

is just textbook or fits in a box. Right?

So that's what we really pride ourselves on

here at Dakota Ridge is when I meet

families for the first time and we're

trying to help them understand what this

might do for them or how help their

child, we are an intervention.

And in the world of federal setting for sites,

we are unique in that we are part

of this large District.

We are not an Intermediate.

We aren't somewhere you send your kids

to that do their own thing,

but we are aligned to district 196

in everything we do and our goal

is to be an intervention,

to be that step in between

to help students figure out what

is getting in the way for them

of being successful, intervene, teach skills

and for many students that means move on

to your next goal.

Whether that's back to your home school,

whether that's out in the community,

whether it's just making

your world a little broader.

Um, I think we're we're fortunately

pretty successful at that.

So um, I'll just talk a little bit

and like oh that's not my screen. Yours.

Um, so I'll just share kind of just

where we've been, how we got here

who I am and then I think I'll ask those

of you who have lived in this world

to kind of fill in where I, cuz I don't live

your role every day.

I live the right, the perspective

of outside of it.

Um, so I prior to my position here I was

I've had many hats in the district.

I was a Center-Based Autism Teacher

at Dakota Hills for many years.

Um, I was an Autism Specialist

and then I came over here

as a Lead Teacher

and then when I left here,

I was an Elementary Coordinator

and came back because once I was here,

I knew this is where I belonged

and I couldn't wait to come back

and I get the opportunity

to lead this building.

And one of the first things we did

when I came back

was we created a shared vision

mission statement as a building.

So this is a statement co-constructed

by staff and what we believe we do here

at Dakota Ridge.

And it's a community engaged

in developing the unique skills

of individual students through creative

programming and collaboration.

And to take that a step further,

what we truly believe is these starred items

and every student who walks in our door,

school has failed them.

And I don't mean a person

has failed them, I just our system

and the way we've gone about things

has not met their needs

and we get this unique opportunity

to rewrite their story.

And so we walk in this door,

I truly believe those of us who we have

very low staff turnover in our building

because this is a place that it it calls to you.

It speaks to you.

Um, and we get

this opportunity to take students who

have no joy at school and to find their joy.

To find school is a place - I'll never forget

Matthew and I went out to Gideon Pond

when he was at Gideon and observed him

and was part of meetings, and all he said

that first day when he came for a tour,

I don't know if any of you were with that day,

he walked through the hallway

and kept saying, "Friends. I'm going to have friends".

That is all he cared and to this day

that is probably what brings him to school every day.

He gets excited.

He never, the kid has impeccable attendance.

He is never gone.

We have behaviors when he has to leave early.

Yes.

Truthfully, because school has never been

an experience like that before.

So for Matthew for you know,

that's a child you can all identify with

because you work with,

but every student here,

no matter how they show us

things aren't going well and how they

communicate that to us um,

we get the opportunity

to figure out how school

can be a place for them to be successful

and there's nothing more rewarding than that.

And it's it's tough in between there.

Right? There's some things to work through.

Um, high quality, effective instruction

we believe that in order to do that

and help school be a successful place,

we have to believe they can

and classrooms are set up to teach.

They are classrooms we are school first.

You can hear a pin drop

in our hallway most days.

Um and when you walk in classrooms,

they're learning.

They're engaged.

They're using all the same curriculum

they're using throughout the district.

The same tools, the same textbooks,

the same everything

and we might modify and adjust,

but I would say we probably

modify and adjust less than

a Setting Three classroom

in a Traditional School.

What age kids are here?

Everybody.

Kindergarten through age 22

down our main hallway.

Everybody - and we do not, go ahead.

The word can, that is that word means so much.

It's such a small word word but,

that word even Martha, Martha is the one

who brought it to Matthew's plate.

I'm going to give you credit for this one

because she said you know what we should

start using the word before when he's

having a behavior to cut it off.

You can do that, you can, you can

and it changed.

You could see it in his head this change.

So I just want to that word can, can.

And to your question, we serve all disability categories.

Um, our building is laid out

in, I think, probably the next slide.

Um, I'll I'll get so this will stack on that.

This doesn't probably mean

a whole lot just the way it's laid out,

but, and this was a snapshot taken months ago

but, we have a total of 22 classrooms

in the building and eight of them are

classrooms that we serve four students

in that classroom environment.

So that the max we put in there is four

and then the others

are what we call large group

is six to eight students.

Um, and within that environment,

there are paraprofessionals supporting.

Um, in small group our goal

we start at for that one teacher

there's usually

two paraprofessionals ideally

and um, those four students.

Sometimes it takes up to five

because right, the reality of just we

have to serve everybody.

Um, and Lorna is part of one

of those small group environments.

So we, that factors in.

So it's um in that classroom there are

actually two paraprofessionals assigned

in addition to Lorna.

One is out on leave right now.

Um, but just not always.

So like the room Matthew's in, it is one other

paraprofessional with Charlotte.

So we we adjust based on what the needs

of that environment is.

Um, we don't necessarily just group

students by age.

So I don't, one we don't

have a full classroom of fourth graders.

Right? We don't have a full classroom

of fifth graders, but we also know

that students learn best with certain

peers and not with others.

So we spend a lot

of time building those class lists

and we create classrooms that we believe

will learn together best, not based

on their age, grade, all those things.

So we might have a eighth grader mixed

in with 10th and 11th graders

because they need some role models.

They need, they need

something different.

Um, we don't always get it right

and we sometimes have to adjust,

but that is just what we do here.

We we reflect and we figure it out and

we adjust.

Um, so we we we joke that we're

a big family here and it really you have to

kind of have that mentality to be here.

We're all in this together.

Um, if you if

everybody carries a radio and if you

say on that radio I need help,

like more than you wished.

I usually follow behind like I think we're good.

I think we're good.

Um, and not because it's so big scary.

I mean we we have evolved in the,

I think what Dakota Ridge was maybe 15 years ago,

our population has evolved and changed.

One because I believe

our setting two and three

within our Traditional School settings has

grown in their capacity to serve students.

So they may have been sent

to Dakota Ridge years ago,

but we don't need to serve

that population anymore.

We also have growing needs

of individuals who maybe just

weren't served in schools before because

they were so extreme.

Um, there are fewer facilities

for them to go to.

Just so many reasons why

that the complexity of learners

has changed here

and we have bad days

just like every school in the district.

I would say it's

not every day and it's not every week.

Um, and the support that one big family

we're in together, you just

there we had we had a major incident

last week, oh this week, it was Tuesday.

Um, but the reality is 90% of the school

had no idea what was going on

because we have systems and routines and

people trained to support those situations

so that we have a practice we follow

and usually it's a hold.

That particular day we went on a secure

and so people just knew.

We got to stay in the building.

We know that the staff

are call the leadership is calling this

because it's going to keep us safe.

We can go about our business and again,

to this day, 90% of people

probably don't know what happened.

And we just went on with our day.

You go on with your day,

You trust and you know

that people have got your back

and we're in this together and

we do everything we can

to keep people safe.

I mean I'm sure if you're at the DSC,

you see things. Right?

You see police cars, you see ambulances.

90% of those situations

are mental health issues

and we are responding

to a student and getting them help.

It is not a risk.

Sometimes the the behavior

that leads up to them meeting

that level of intervention

looks scary, but it looks

more scary because it's not typical to see.

It's not because we're in danger.

It's because we're scared how are we

going to keep you safe?

How are we going to meet your needs?

And we take that responsibility

really seriously.

Um, every two class so, in our small group

environments we got a redesign of those

spaces last year so those spaces all

have three break spaces in them because

that population of students just need

less noise they need some time alone

some sometimes isolation we have swings

in every one of those every one of those

classrooms has one room with a swing

Mount and then down the main hallway as

we get into what we call large group in

between every two classrooms we have a

break space and within that break space

we our hope is that students learn use

that space proactively so that they can

request a break because when they think

about going back to a home school and

their environment grows drastically they

need to know when to say I need to break

where to take that break what tools they

need to take that break um and then

there are times when students don't have

that skill yet that as adults we help

them to learn that by supporting them

and getting to that break space and we

baby steps to Growing to where they can

do that

independently um like I said all support

all staff carry radios we have a

building leadership team that's made up

of myself Mr Wilson is the assistant

administrator and then there are six

additional people that make up our our

school psychologist our we have a

full-time School social worker we have

uh a lead interventionist so academic

interventions who is a behavior also has

deep background of behavior we have a

curriculum interventionist or core

intervention

who has a strong background in behavior

and then we have a behavior lead

interventionist um all who have been

teachers in the building and believe in

this um we have a float staff which is

made up primarily of prayer

professionals who work really hard

we back when Staffing was a different

story right they were two or three

individuals who truly their job all day

was just Flo and be in places now they

are individuals we have identified who

they are part of teams but they they

have flexibility um and they build

relationships throughout the building so

they're our go-to when we have uh a

couple of Staff down here in small group

who they have we have a new Elementary

learner

who is really struggling um and they are

the right people they have built a

relationship with him and so we just

have flexibility that that float staff

are the people that come down and

intervene sometimes they just need a new

face sometimes they just need somebody

they know they can trust who wasn't in

that moment with them um and we have a

deep shared understanding of students we

do a lot to communicate with each other

um based on a need to know right there's

that fine line between

confidentiality um but we do a lot we

send out emails hey just a heads up this

student's plan is this or we have an all

staff meeting once a month and we might

bring a picture of a student if you see

this person in the hallway please don't

say this we have a young lady right now

who is exploring work she's a transition

age learner um and what we have learned

is when she wears her sweatshirt that

announces her employer that is probably

something went wrong today at her job

and what's your go-to if you see her

walking through the building that says

K's across it it's like oh I was work

today right well we have figured out as

a team that we have to coach everybody

not to engage about her job because that

is her like way of letting us know I

can't talk about my job today um but not

what our first reaction as adults is so

we do a lot of working with each other

just sending building wide emails like

hey if you see so and so in the hallway

heads up don't ask

her so um

yeah so this is more information that we

met with um staff here in the building

just to talk about what does it feel

like to work here and what are supports

are in place so these may be SL yeah

perfect and can I just name I Martha was

involved in this too I didn't say your

name earlier but Martha spend the

sizeable amount of time here and help

plan just from the flow perspective too

around maybe not um kind of coming and

going to so

make so I would just I guess I would

wonder what things are you wondering

about and what things do you hear that

make you um

uncertain that's the question I that's

one of the first questions i' I've

always wanted to know is what are your

concerns of why you don't want to come

here you know I find it a wonderful to

work but other people don't see that and

I'm like I don't I don't understand

understand I mean you're so well

supported um it is like a family here

you have a ton of information and it's

always being given to you in many

different ways so I just yeah that's a

hard one for me to and I would say I

think we've worked together a long time

right and there are times that there are

decisions Dan and I might make or that

as a building and Charlotte I don't this

why are we doing this and we want that

that is how we that's how we can only do

better so if people come in and they're

like this makes no sense why is someone

doing this maybe we're going to learn a

better way so we welcome those questions

or whoa there's so many layers here

nobody shared with you let me share with

you so you understand why we do um and

that's really how we operate I I spend a

lot of my day

just talking about what we

do I think the other thing to know is

that um it's a big decision when a

student ends up coming here right so um

it is a significant decision when an IEP

team is considering a setting change for

a student for a lot of reasons right

like statute wise but also we are making

a decision that that student should be

leaving their home building for a period

of time always our goal is to have them

come back um and sometimes we find this

is the right setting for them um so I

think sometimes we hear questions and

buildings around how those decisions are

made and why um and I think just know

that they're not taken light and this is

like the very you have what 120 students

right now in a district of

29,000 um so it is truly like a small

number of students who truly need this

setting and that's also why it's

effective right um so if you hear

questions in the buildings always know

that that is the case and we can help

with those conversations because if

people don't spend time here I don't

think they always understand and they

the program the PE the students who do

move here are at their worst when they

come here so what the perception of that

individual child when they leave

somewhere else is much different than

the perception we get to have because we

get a fresh start we get to take that

worst and it's we we truly believe as a

building we there's nowhere else for

them to go we're not we're not

intervening to figure out where else

we're going to send you we're

intervening to get in it with you we're

intervening to figure out what's in the

way and how are we going to fix it and

not fix it we can't fix anything that's

the wrong word just to help you grow and

do better and

so I think a lot of times people think

of the kids they have seen come here and

the story they have is the story of that

child at their worst and we're really

lucky because we get to celebrate those

small wins and change that story

um

so I when kids come here you almost see

them Blossom right for some kids like

the environment is the right environment

for them with the structures and

routines that are in place and the

supports and just the connections with

staff and some kids just absolutely I

would say lots of kids not some

absolutely just loss them in this

setting and I would imagine that people

some hesitation about like supporting

hair and I I don't know that that's

necessarily any of you is a like maybe I

don't have the skills to support with

that particular student or I don't I

don't know that I'm capable of that and

I think the realization of the team

right like you're not alone but I I I

would say that that's a lot of times

more of a fear and of the

unknown and to be that off of that like

that's I I

I been here um I know that um in

chatting with coworkers you know I talk

like got over

um you're going to giggle you're GNA

laugh and you're going to leave with a

smile usually I mean that's my

experience you I think a lot of the

times that I've in communication with

some coworkers is and I'm not trying to

over separate things it's like they have

that uncomfortable feeling that like you

know the unknown or the big the PCM

training piece and the part that I like

to say much what you guys have always

just said here too is that you have that

support in the room that will always be

there right away for you if you need it

you know and that's even a culture thing

we hear of Staff here when people are on

their back wheels or just having a bad

day of nobody in my room is PM train

well the reality is we don't use PM

every day like I

mean it's not this magic wand right we

don't use it that often but it is that

something when people are feeling right

we all go to what do I not have how am I

not equi to do this um but really it's

about coming here and helping kids be

successful and we got we've got a lot of

ways to get creative to do that in

interventions we try and tools we use we

are resource Rich yeah I feel it's

endless it's endless you just have to

identify what you need or what they need

and then and we'll try it and we'll try

it let give it a can't work yeah try

something else right so it's thinking

that lens and all fa all behavior is a

form of communication so behavior isn't

personal it's a child trying to

communicate something and they don't

have the skills to tell you what that is

in that moment so thinking through all

the tools that you have here at Dakota

Rich to support kids and there is no

tool here we use that we don't have in

other buildings or that we can't get in

other buildings so I think that's the

other layer to know it's not like we're

tool Rich because we've got it at all

here it's out there it's using a rocking

chair instead of a regular chair it's

putting a roller ball at their feet it's

giving them a fidget in their class room

it's using a body stck those aren't

magic wands those are things we have

everywhere we might have more of

them um but we are very very aware to

make sure it's a functional tool that

can go somewhere like that so and there

he is there's

MJ

you

big good good

job

and there is

my and he has

relationships with everybody he's like

Royal to you when he walks in in the

morning might take him five to 10

minutes to get to the classroom because

everyone's got to stop and chat myself

included um and he's got things with

each person we have subar who's here two

days a week who I got watch their

interaction yesterday and I

just and he has grown so much because

when when he first started here he was

in a room by himself so to see him do

that of that oh so so awesome like I

said I watched him sign 20 some words

last night and I was just amazed that he

just kept going I'm

like wow and then he'll tell the story

again and he know add a word to his

story and I'm like yes yes just keep

adding and adding and

add what was on the screen um it was

actually Shelby was teaching ASL class

and there were

chips

and he just thought it was the funniest

thing and then he would describe

the do you guys want to take over this

part these are just all the things you

shared and I kind of captured them on a

slide when we met of thinking of like

what is it like to support hair subing

and stepping

in

um okay

so just in this just in this now in this

week um we have our safe spaces for them

I have watched Matthew on his own walk

in just walk in instead of taking us

seven years y y but we got

there

just keep going try something different

um

so a positive happy demeanor when I walk

into that break room