Welcome to the 2006-2007 academic year! This year promises to be exciting as we work together to improve outcomes for all students in the District of Columbia. As we begin our work together this year, please remember that your school based Student Support Team (SST) provides assistance to staff as they work with students who are struggling academically and/or behaviorally. The SST will be even more important this year as we work to improve results on the DC-CAS and as many DC schools implement the new collaborative planning process. The SST process complements these priorities well as it enables school personnel to use a collaborative problem-solving process to discuss the needs of individual and/or groups of students. The SST is a data-driven process that serves as an intervention/prevention system to help students before they fail.

We are excited about the new school year and continuing our work on the implementation of SSTs. Please check this section of the web site frequently for new and/or updated information on the SST process. This year your schools will receive: revised SST manuals and forms, additional Pre-referral Intervention Manuals; and an updated directory of community resources. This year training on SST implementation and evidence-based intervention strategies will be provided twice per month. Topics and training dates will be posted on this web site under “events”.

If you have any questions about the SST process, please contact the State Improvement Grant Office at 202-442-5539 or email Stephanie.Garnett@k12.dc.us

• What are Student Support Teams (SSTs)
• What materials are available to support SST implementation?
• Download the required forms for implementing the new SST process. It is important to duplicate forms in advance and store them in a place where others can access them as needed. The content of these forms may not be modified.
• Register your school team now for SST training in September!
• Review the September Checklist of Activities for SSTs (pdf)
• Download a letter that you can modify and give to your staff to raise awareness of the SST process (word)
• Read an article featured in the Superintendent’s February 2006 newsletter, “Implementing Evidenced-Based Interventions for DCPS Students” (word)
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Check out just a few of the excellent (and free) resources from Interventioncentral.org!
  1. Managing Defiant Kids. 22 Simple Strategies. Students who are defiant or non-compliant can be among the most challenging to teach. They frequently interrupt instruction, often do poorly academically, and may show little motivation to learn. There are no magic solutions for managing the behaviors of defiant kids...but Schoolwide Strategies for Managing...Defiance/Non-Compliance pulls together a range of research-based techniques that can help teachers to reduce defiance and increase compliance among these students
  2. Achieving Positive Outcomes With Challenging Adults. Teachers, administrators, and school support staff often find themselves interacting with adults who are unhappy and are not afraid to show it! The page Working With Angry Adults: Ideas to Manage Conflict and Still Achieve Good Outcomes contains suggestions to calm others when they are angry, to reduce one's own tension and stress in the face of anger, to set up meetings that are more relaxed and less confrontational, and to negotiate with adults in school settings in a manner that is most likely to result in 'win-win' outcomes.