CASE Collaborative

Goals and Philosophy

Four basic programming components provide the infrastructure of the high school:

• Challenging academics with appropriate accommodations and specialized instruction to address varying learning styles and disabilities. Colebrook offers its students the opportunity to earn high school credits that are directly transferred to their sending district transcript, as well as meet each district’s diploma course requirements

• Our Therapeutic Milieu is in essence, a gestalt formed by the dynamic interface of all program components. At the foundation of this gestalt are school-based values adopted collectively by students and staff. At the bedrock supporting it all, is the relationships established between student and staff.

Within the Relationship Therapeutic Model we seek to develop trusting, boundary appropriate, and nurturing relationships to guide students through an exploration of their attitudes, values, and behaviors with the goal being to foster academic, emotional, and social/relational development.

Specific Therapeutic Services are provided for students and available to parents including: 1:1 therapy, group therapy, parent meetings and consultation, family meetings, crisis intervention, etc.

• Community building with the emphasis on empowering students to identify the type of school climate and culture they desire and to be active in creating it and maintaining it. Teamwork is a priority in the community and manifest in events such as an all school field trip and planning and preparing for our traditional family style Thanksgiving dinner. Through this process students often discover latent skills and talents allowing them to contribute to a community in ways not previously experienced.

• A Level and Behavior Management System provides therapeutic and behavioral interventions toward students increasingly internalizing a locus of control. Meaning that students, overtime, will increase their involvement in more socially appropriate activities, demonstrate more age appropriate decision-making and gain new levels of independence. This occurs all the while they decrease the level of external support and limits to manage these skills. As students engage successfully in more responsible school participation, they are rewarded with increased privileges.

The Level System and Behavior Management System are also constructed upon the same commonly accepted school based values as is the community-building component.

We recognize the immeasurable value of working as a team with families. We also understand the considerable stress and isolation parents of adolescents may experience. To this end, we remain committed to finding opportunities to ensure that parents feel they are valued and encouraged to be active participants in their child’s tenure at Colebrook.

We seek to create a culture in which students feel they have role models with whom they can identify. We seek to create opportunities for students to develop latent skills recognizing that students need to feel safe and comfortable to explore, take risks and develop these strengths. Students often begin taking small steps toward re-channeling their time and energy in more productive, constructive and self-affirming ways allowing another version of them to be revealed.

Recognition of these gains occurs through many venues: peer approval and status, weekly awards, Student of The Week, increased privileges and responsibilities, community recognition, and quarterly awards. We aim to catch kids being good when they least expect it.

The academic and social progress made may prepare students to return to a mainstream setting. This goal is appropriate and attractive for many. Our experience has lead us to adopt a practice of a thoughtful transition on a partial basis allowing a student to acclimate to the increased academic and social demands inherent in a large high school setting. A student is then able to use Colebrook as a “home base” to help him/her navigate the transition and to provide whatever support s/he needs. Students may mainstream back to their sending district high school or access classes at Acton/Boxborough Regional High School located on the same campus as Colebrook.

However, for some students mainstreaming is neither desirable nor feasible. For these students other transitional activities may replace a traditional mainstream plan in which they undertake other transitional experiences. These may include: Dual Enrollment at Middlesex Community College, a School to Careers internship experience, and/or helping a student develop appropriate employment readiness skills.

Population Served:

Typical characteristics and qualities of a student served in this program generally include some constellation of the following:

• Average to superior range of intellectual abilities;
• Artistic, musical and/or writing talents;
• Skills to be academically successful;
• A desire to earn a high school diploma;
• An articulated awareness of personal difficulties and is motivation to address these areas;
• Athletic skill and participation in team sports;
• Low self-esteem;
• Poor impulse control;
• Low frustration levels and/or high distractibility levels;
• Mal-adaptive social skills and difficulty with authority figures;
• Conflicts with peers and difficulty resolving social conflicts;
• Difficulty reading social cues appropriately;
• Poor social and decision making judgment;
• Psychiatric Disorders (i.e., depression, anxiety, PTSD, bi-polar, etc.);
• Low locus of internal control relying on adult intervention and other external controls to manage behavior;
• A diagnosis of ADD/ADHD and/or a verbal or non-verbal learning disability
• A desire and capability to form trusting relationships with adults and peers.

Students must demonstrate a level of self-control that ensures they will not endanger themseslves or others. Neither the facility, the program design, or staffing pattern are adequate to contain a student who is in need of physical restraint. Students soon realize that it is we as a community, and not an individual member who ultimately creates and maintains the safety of the program. When a student looks for adults to impose physical constraints to provide that safety, s/he is in need of a more restrictive setting.

In the event of an emergency in which a student poses physical harm to others, program protocol requires us to call the Acton Police for assistance. If swifter action is deemed necessary staff are trained in physical restraint. This of course would only be used as a last resort crisis intervention.

Extended Opportunities For Success (EOS)

EOS is an additional component of Colebrook offering a more flexible school day for students who have difficulty accessing their education through the standard school schedule.

Students who fit the profile of an EOS student have often experienced success in the field of work and while they would prefer to work rather than attend school, they remain interested and committed to earning a diploma. Educational programming is highly individualized and the day-to-day structure may vary from student to student. An EOS instructor works in collaboration with other high school staff to coordinate and implement an EOS student’s IEP.

Students may also receive assistant in locating a job or internship at a work site in the career interest of the student. A Work-Based Learning Plan consists of standard employment skills as well as any individual goals developed by student and instructor. The plan is then collaboratively monitored and evaluated by the EOS facilitator and the site supervisor.

Career areas and work site experiences have included: culinary arts, real estate law, accounting, high-tech optics manufacturing, Acton Police Department detectives, interior design, community art organization, performing management duties at a video store, working at an advertising firm, and earning a journeyman’s license through long term work experience with a certified plumber.

The EOS Instructor also works with all other Colebrook students in planning transitional activities including: college visits, facilitating access to home district guidance departments, researching and referring students to adult service organizations (i.e. DMH, MA, Rehab.), offering workshops on appropriate work skills, registering for PSAT’s and SAT’s, completing college applications and essays, etc.

I. Academic Component:

Underlying the Colebrook High School academic component are certain essential beliefs about student learning and achievement. They are:

1. Intelligence and Children’s Capacity to Learn - “You can get smart.” Children’s learning is primarily determined by their effort and use of effective strategies. “Intelligence is not a fixed inborn limit on learning capacity. All children can do rigorous academic material at high standards (Howard, 1993).

2. Learning Itself - Learning is constructed as learners assimilate new experience with prior knowledge. Learners must be acive, doing and applying knowledge and reflecting on its meaning out loud or in writing.

Learning varies with the degree to which we meet learners’ needs. Therefore, we seek to create a psychological and cognitive milieu characterized by community, mutual support, risk-taking and higher level thinking.

We are not only teachers of our discipline, but more so, teachers of students.

3. Teachers and Teaching - The nature of professional knowledge is in areas of performance, teaching repertoires, and student matching. Therefore, our learning as teachers can never be finished. We must constantly enlarge our repertoire, stretch our comfort zones, and develop our abilities to match students’ styles and needs.

Professional capacity of a teacher requires systematic and continual study of diverse knowledge bases, including: content, pedagogy, content-specific pedagogy, children and differences, behaviors of individuals in effective organizations and parent and community involvement.

4. School and Schooling - The total environment of a school has a powerful effect on students’ learning. Each teacher must see his/herself as a shaper of the school-as-learning environment. We each play a role beyond the classroom and are responsible for the “system” of the school. Collegiality and interdependence are the bedrock of our working relationships. This interdependence requires that we each function as a leader and team player.

Students must feel safe. They must feel that they belong and are seen as an important agent of change in the school culture. Students will not succeed if they feel “invisible”. (Saphier & Gower, 1997)

An important goal for every student is to develop one’s own awareness of one’s learning strengths, preferences and weaknesses, in essence one's ‘metacognition’.

We nurture student’s self-awareness of learning styles in a variety of ways:

• Students complete learning style inventories;
• Students participate in interactive learning style and learning disability seminars taught by our teachers;
• Teachers create a comfortable, non-threatening climate/culture for learning;
• Teachers engage students personally so as to make learning meaningful, through journals, discussions, and reflection, etc.
• Teachers match repertoires with students’ ‘metacognitive’ styles to help students use effective strategies.

Special Learning Needs:

If a student has a diagnosed learning disability(ies), appropriate accommodations and/or modifications are made to the academic program. These accommodations are based on the instructional profile, goals, and objectives written in a student’s IEP. Such accomodations may include: extended time for tests/quizzes, alternative ways of administering a test/quiz (i.e., orally), alternate forms of assessment, use of assistive technologies, etc.

When an IEP is developed for an entering student the program director, academic advisor and counselor meet with the sending school’s liaison for a placement meeting to review the student’s learning profile and IEP goals and objectives. It is then determined what instructional accommodations are necessary to ensure a successful learning experience and confirm whether we are able to meet the student’s needs.

Due to the small design of the school (30 students) and our high teacher to student ratio, we are able to provid highly individualized and specialized instruction. Class size ranges between 5-12 students. Each student is also assigned an Academic Advisor (one of the teachers) whose role it is to oversee and monitor a student's educational program and progress. Responsibilities include:

1. Implementing an in-house Educational Review within the first two weeks of enrollment to ensure all staff has a comprehensive understanding of specific educational/learning issues;
2. Participating in the IEP goal and benchmark formulation;
3. Writing Quarterly Progress Reports, monitoring and updating transcripts, monitoring Level Status, and behavioral, academic, and attendance statistics;
4. Monitoring and planning academic programming to monitor progress toward earning a diploma;
5. Communicating frequently with parents about progress and educational issues.

III. Therapeutic Component

• Therapeutic Milieu-Milieu is in essence, a gestalt formed by the dynamic interface of all program components. At the foundation of this gestalt are school-based values adopted collectively by students and staff. At the bedrock supporting it all, is the relationships established between student and staff.

By virtue of the definition, milieu therapy utilizes every class and unstructured period, every conversation, field trip, and interaction as an opportunity to address behaviors that both negatively and positively impact a student's progress and provide for corrective learning experiences.

The therapeutic component provides clinical treatment and support to students and their families, and consultation and support to staff.

We understand the considerable stress and isolation parents can experience in attempting to meet the needs and address the behaviors of their child. The family support services offered at Colebrook have evolved out of an awareness of the immeasurable value of working as a team with parents and families of our students.

1. Student Services:

• Individual Therapy – Weekly individual therapy sessions provide an opportunity to work on students’ individual social, behavioral, and emotional goals. Therapy helps students realize their full potential by addressing issues that undermine their success, deepening their self-awareness, supporting their strengths, and validating their person.
• Group therapy – Weekly group therapy is designed to give students a place to learn to be supportive to each other and to nurture the development of a positive peer culture. Group offerings include but are not limited to:
• Anger Management
• Art Therapy
• Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
• Student Directed/Therapist Facilitated Discussion
• Self-Esteem
• Alcohol and Other Drugs
• Teen Topics
• Dyad Therapy – When clinically indicated students may receive therapy in pairs.
• Case Management – The Colebrook therapist communicates and collaborates with other support systems on an ongoing basis (i.e. DSS, DYS, etc.)
• Crisis Intervention – Additional support is provided to students and families during particularly stressful times.

2. Family Support Services:

• Fathers' and Mothers' meetings- These meetings offer parents an opportunity to exchange ideas and give each other support. These meetings address issues such as managing behaviors at home, homework, planning for the future, etc.
• Family Therapy – Family therapy can be an important part of an integrated treatment approach to address the needs of families and students. The level of services is assessed on a case-by-case basis. In all cases, therapists maintain regular contact with parents.
• Phone and Email Contact – Parents and clinical staff maintain regular phone and/or email contact. These contacts provide additional support and facilitate home/school collaboration.
• Home Visit – Home visits may be arranged for families when appropriate.
• Parent Meetings – Parent meetings provide support for parents in dealing with child-focused issues and other stresses which may impact their parenting.
• Other – Therapists attend:
  • TEAM Meetings
  • Reinstatement Meetings (following a suspension)
  • Transition Meetings
  • Agency/Collateral Meetings (i.e. DSS, DYS, etc.)

3. Student Assistance Team:

A Student Assistance Team (SAT) is an intervention support system to deal with students who are experiencing problems, specifically substance abuse-related issues. The Colebrook High School SAT is a collaborative effort of a multidisciplinary team including the program's teachers, counselors, administrator, and clinical consultant.

The strength of the SAT is derived from the combined expertise of all team members. The members have participated in trainings on substance abuse and related prevention and intervention strategies.

If a staff member observes behavioral changes, typical in adolescents who are using substances, the students' counselor will present these concerns to the student and parents.

Depending on the level of use identified, a number of intervention options are available and discussed with student and parents.

( MacPhee, Nancy, "Student Assistance Programs - What are the Benefits? What are the Challenges?" Mount Auburn Hospital Prevention Center Newsletter, Fall 1990)

III. Community Building:

Activities Include:

Community meetings occur weekly and are attended by all staff and students. These meetings are co-led by a therapist and a student volunteer. Meeting Rituals Include: Student of the Week, Announcement of Weekly Awards, Trivia of the Week, Health Tip, Quote of the Week, Weekly Appreciations of Others, recognition of any apologies made during the week, Quarterly Awards, and Reading of the Good-bye Book.

Beyond the weekly traditions the meeting has an open agenda in which anyone in the community can present an announcement, concern, issue, or request. While Community Meeting is formally scheduled once weekly, we often schedule ad hoc meetings as we deem necessary.

School-Based Values & Community Service - We formally engage students in the process of exploring their values. We are particularly interested in helping students to become aware of their value system and to understand how it impacts a community. We collectively as students, staff and parents choose to indoctrinate and maintain a set of values commonly believed as essential for a healthy learning and social school environment.

We seek to inculcate not only the values themselves into the school culture, but also the process of valuing.

Valuing is composed of sub-processes:

• Prizing and cherishing one’s beliefs
• Publicly affirming, when appropriate, one’s values
• Choosing one’s beliefs and values:
• Choosing from alternatives
• Choosing after consideration of consequences, and
• Choosing freely
• Acting on one’s beliefs with a pattern of consistency and repetition.

(Rath, 1966)

We utilize a variety of forums with which to accomplish this. For example, Student Council members often lead program discussions about school values during community meetings, explaining that values are the primary basis for school rules and consequences.

Our beginning of the year tradition is to facilitate discussions and activities that engage all of us in a process of re-committing to our school values. Primary values often include: respect, responsibility and honesty. Other values identified as important include: individual and community safety, taking risks, appreciating differences, perseverance, taking care of one’s self, and creativity,

Student Council is an elected body of four students, a teacher and a therapist. The process of election includes student nominations, student speeches, and an election. Elected students serve two terms and must maintain a minimum of Level II Status (see Behavior Management section) while serving.

Conflict Resolution and Peer Mediation - We look to empower students and toward students to resolve and take personal responsibility for conflicts that arise in peer or staff relationships. Conflict Resolution is one forum that offers students a safe, structured and guided process to communicate their concerns.

Community Goodbyes - Saying good-bye to any Colebrook High School member is an important community ritual. Each person’s tenure at Colebrook is a unique and personal experience. We believe it is important to not only recognize, but to celebrate an individual’s contributions to the community, their own individual achievements, as well as the mere fact that one is “moving on”.

IV. Behavior Management Component:

All students rely to varying degrees on the external support and structure of the program to address academic social and behavioral issues. For students who are working to increase the internalization of structure and self-control, we offer a systematic behavior management component. The premise of this system is grounded in the agreed upon school values, i.e., respect, responsibility and safety.

We attempt to use this system to help students identify the maladaptive behaviors or coping strategies they have developed over time to manage stress, anxiety, etc. Providing predictable and concrete consequences is one tool to help achieve this.

Please direct inquiries and referrals to:

Maureen Keegan, M. Ed., Program Director
15 Charter Road, Acton MA 01720
(978) 264-4182
Maureen_Keegan@mail.ab.mec.edu
or mkeegan@colonial.net