UMaine-led program helping K-12 schools adopt comprehensive supports for student well-being

Schools across Maine are finding success meeting their students’ social, emotional and academic needs with an internationally recognized, evidence-based framework known as Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). 

As Maine PBIS — a partnership between the University of Maine System (UMS) and the Maine Department of Education — holds its annual conference in Augusta this week, educators involved with the initiative are celebrating an increase in the number of certified PBIS coaches and trainers in the state. The growth is the result of a UMS micro-credential program launched two years ago, aimed at making it easier for schools to adopt the PBIS framework. To date, seven Maine educators have earned the credential with 13 more expected to do so within the next year.

School-based coaches and trainers are essential to PBIS implementation, because they help colleagues in their own schools as well as other communities realize the full benefits of the framework. So even a small increase in the number of certified educators is significant, says Courtney Angelosante, Maine PBIS initiative coordinator and lecturer of special education at the University of Maine College of Education and Human Development.

“These on-the-ground professionals have a comprehensive understanding of the PBIS framework and how to effectively implement it in schools. They’re skilled facilitators, who are able to work with other educators to develop the most effective solutions for each school community,” Angelosante said.

PBIS is not a curriculum or a system for addressing individual student behaviors, Angelosante says. Rather it provides for a multi-tiered continuum of supports focused on creating a shared vision for a positive school culture that meets the needs of all students. Based on a community health promotion model, schools that have implemented PBIS see improvements in students’ social-emotional competence, mental health and learning, as well as the well-being of teachers and staff. In addition, proponents say it promotes belonging and family engagement, improves attendance, and can help schools manage crisis situations. 

Maine PBIS utilizes a collaborative professional development cohort model in which teams of educators from individual schools work with teams from other schools to develop PBIS plans tailored to each schools’ unique needs. More than 100 schools from communities across the state have either implemented PBIS, or are currently in the process of doing so.

The Maine PBIS Tier 1 Trainer and Coach micro-credential was developed by Angelosante and Karen Robbie, a 2021 graduate of UMaine’s doctoral program in Education, to increase the number of trainers and coaches in the state, allowing more schools to implement PBIS. To earn the credential, students complete a series of three graduate-level courses that are part of a graduate certificate offered through the UMaine College of Education and Human Development. 

Stephanie Oliphant, principal of the K-8 Palermo Consolidated School, earned the micro-credential about a year ago. 

“In my everyday work, PBIS allows me to understand behavior and systems, so our school can put things in place based on research, not just my experience or what I believe, addressing issues in a way that’s actually going to make change,” Oliphant said.

She says her school district RSU 12 (Sheepscot Valley), which also includes Chelsea Elementary School, Somerville Elementary School, Whitefield Elementary School and Windsor Elementary School, has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of student suspensions since implementing PBIS. In addition to serving as a PBIS trainer and coach with her district, Oliphant is an external coach for Medomak Middle School in Waldoboro, part of RSU 40.

“PBIS is like a lot of initiatives, in that you’ll start off strong, but it will wane if you don’t have support through difficult and challenging times. So the micro-credential has really helped us build that support throughout the state,” Oliphant said. 

Bryan Lescord, a third grade teacher at George B. Weatherbee School in Hampden, is about two-thirds of the way through the micro-credential. Although he has been using PBIS for most of his career, which began as an educational technician in a special education class 15 years ago, Lescord says the courses he’s taken as part of the credential program have deepened his knowledge and skills in innumerable ways. 

“I’ve learned so much about coaching, presenting effectively, the research and theory around implementation and adult learning principles, because ultimately when we talk about implementing a PBIS framework, we’re talking about changing the behavior of adults first and foremost to effectuate better outcomes for our students,” Lescord said.

Like Oliphant, Lescord says the opportunity to work with other educators from across the state has been particularly exciting. 

“Whether it’s with someone in Fort Kent or North Berwick, you really develop true professional friendships. We’re on Zoom all the time, identifying common challenges and opportunities, and we’re able — through a community of practice model — to draw on each others’ experience and help each other out,” he said.

The Maine PBIS annual conference is this Thursday, Nov. 7, at the Augusta Civic Center.

Contact: Casey Kelly, casey.kelly@maine.edu