Whole Student Health

Ensure students are consistently attending school, happy to be at school, and engaged in their learning.

• Further, refine and implement a  3-tiered school-wide system of strategies for increasing average daily attendance to 95% or higher in all grades for all students (i.e. Attendance Works). [Tier 1 Universal Prevention: strategies to encourage healthy attendance for all students; Tier 2 Early Intervention: Provide support for students with less than 95% attendance to avoid chronic absence; Tier 3 Intensive Intervention: Specific support resources for students/families facing the greatest challenges of getting their child to school)

• Partner with Keeping Kids in School (KKIS/.80 FTE) to provide a full-time caseworker who prioritizes SED, EL, and SWD students who are chronically absent. These caseworkers are employed by Seneca Family of Agencies, a local Community Based Organization, and work to ensure that services and referrals are provided in a culturally competent manner, with sensitivity to unique practices of the local community with the ultimate goal of decreasing chronic absenteeism.

• Organize comprehensive enrichment programming to capture the attention and excitement of students, such as monthly assemblies, comprehensive & nutritional garden programs, enrichment classes (music, library, arts, foreign language, etc), music, middle school rotations, recess activities, sports, and other engagement programs determined by stakeholders to be a priority (e.g. ballet folklorico).

• Co-fund a Community Health and Outreach Worker position to support the needs of students who are socio-economically disadvantaged or underserved.  This individual will work with the district and the local community (i.e. Community Based Organizations) to ensure families are able to obtain the mental health, physical health, and social service resources needed (i.e. dental care, immunizations, food bank, health screenings) in order to attend school regularly and successfully. 

• Provide short-term independent study options for students who are not yet ready to return to school due to the pandemic so that they can fully transition back to in-person instruction at some point during the 2021-2022 school year.

As a community-based school, ensure families and school staff work together to support and improve the learning, development, and health of students.

• Promote parental participation in programs for unduplicated pupils and individuals with exceptional needs

• Provide a welcoming environment, information and resources, and opportunities to meet with teachers to discuss student progress 

• Maintain new 2021-22 (.50 FTE) FLOA (Family Liaison/Office Assistant) position to assist in providing bilingual services and community resources in order  to further engage and support EL families especially (See Goal 3.33).

• Foster parent partnerships via the start-up of a new 2022-2023 Parent Club that convenes on a monthly basis. The Club focuses on the progress of LCAP Goals, Community School focus, parenting resources, parent generated-topics /themes, requested guest speakers and celebrating student successes. Spanish translation will be made available to support English Learner family participation.

• Communicate students’ ongoing progress to parents via report cards, progress reports, parent portals, and regularly scheduled conferences and parent meetings.

• Provide at least 4  annual family events that highlight MACS (Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports, AVID, Community-Based Schools, STEAM) schoolwide focus areas.

• Further refine the school messaging and notification system so that all families, students, and staff have one platform for easy, ongoing, two-way communication access in their preferred language (e.g. ParentSquare).

Provide a positive social and emotional school climate that is conducive to effective teaching and learning.

• Beginning the 2022-2023 school year, provide full-time site-based school counselor who will serve as the lead for social-emotional services (SEL/MTSS/PBIS) in order to meet the social and emotional needs of K-8 students and to make outside agency referrals for behavioral health follow-ups. 

• Utilize EduClimber online platform to provide case management data analysis to improve whole student health. 

• Teacher on Special Assignment position will help to management and foster Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) strategies.

• Continuously promote and share the district’s GROWTH Vision and AVID Mission with the school community: 

• Maintain a systemized, coordinated, multi-disciplinary services process (i.e. Coordinated Services Team) for addressing student concerns and identified needs (e.g. academic, social, emotional, health, and/or basic needs).

• Provide a variety of social/emotional learning opportunities for students in and outside of the classroom.

• Develop and implement a  comprehensive schoolwide integrated arts plan that fosters student expression and resilience skills (e.g. self-awareness, mindfulness, self-care, positive relationships & purpose).

• In 2022-2023, the new TOSA  (Teacher on Special Assignment- .50 FTE)  will provide ongoing support and coaching for all Whole Student Health Services (Goal Area 2) including providing ongoing support of evidence-based practices of PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports) school-wide, including providing professional development, co-teaching or modeling instructional practices as needed to promote a positive school climate and support the district’s multi-tiered systems of support model. 

• Provide instructional staff specific  trauma-informed and resilience training workshops (2022-2023 emphasis- Prevent Adverse Childhood Experiences-PACEs). 

• Encourage and provide ongoing opportunities for staff training and student expression through/in the area of the arts. 

• Begin a pilot of  ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) screening tool to help inform targeted, evidence-based interventions and trauma-informed practices and provide ongoing staff development regarding trauma-informed care.

• Provide Family Life classes that inclusively address social, emotional issues and developmental issues for grades 5-8.

• Organize school-wide assemblies, programs, and resources that promote Tier 1 services and strategies such as emotional resilience, the celebration of diversity, conflict resolution, self-regulation/empowerment, empathy, and bullying prevention. (Programs may include but are not limited to: Restorative Practices, Listening for Change, BEST, Toolbox, Safe School Ambassadors, Conflict Managers, Mix It Up, etc.)

• Provide appropriate student supervision (via instructional assistants, yard duty supervisors, etc.)

• Maintain Behavioral Assistant for low-income students and EL students who are referred for behavioral needs through the district Coordinated Services process. The Behavioral Assistant supports actions and needs of behavior plans, assist with implementing Positive Behavior Interventions Supports (PBIS), assist with the development of Behavior Improvement Plans (BIP), be trained on effective behavior management practices, and help train teachers/instructional assistants on effective behavior management techniques. 

• Foster and consistently implement School-based Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS).

• Beginning 2022-2023, provide 1.0 FTE of school-based counseling services in order to meet the social and emotional needs of K-8 students (Tier 1-2 MTSS emphasis) and make outside agency referrals for behavioral health follow-ups.

Ensure a well-designed physical education program that provides the opportunity for students to learn key concepts and practice critical skills needed to establish and maintain physically active lifestyles throughout childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. 

• Administer the Physical Fitness Test each year to appropriate grade levels (as applicable).

• Provide physical education to students 200 minutes every 10 days  for grades 1-6 and to K the extent possible as well as a minimum of 400 minutes  for grades 7-8 every 10 days.

• Provide active recess opportunities and ample equipment.

• Conduct  semi-annual quarterly District Wellness Committee meetings that continuously refine district wellness policies and promote ongoing opportunities for students, staff, and overall community wellness and sustainability.

• Continue to expand student and family health services at our onsite, licensed wellness center on the school campus where students and parents of Guerneville School will begin to receive trauma-informed, basic needs support (dental, vaccine, health checks) and wellness resources offered in partnership with West County Health Centers. (Also see Goal 3.3) 

• Community Health and Engagement Fairs: two fairs onsite or co-sponsored per year to provide community outreach booths and health resources that are available to the Guerneville community. 

Ensure students are digitally literate and understand online digital safety.

• Maintain no less than 1:1 devices for student use to support the implementation of all technology initiatives 

• Invest in additional  devices and ‘hotspots’  for student home use whenever possible and applicable. 

• Continually invest in site infrastructure in order to maintain a healthy network, adequate bandwidth, and consistent high-speed internet access.

• Continue to purchase student licenses for student acceleration. (i.e. LEXIA, ISL, Dreambox, Google Apps For Education, etc.) Provide technology and digital literacy support from a classified staff position that supports: 1) Instruction in and outside of the computer lab, 2) School/district reporting functions, 3) Ongoing training opportunities to staff, 4) provide cybersecurity training to all students and their families.

Ensure school grounds and buildings are kept in good order, attractive and safe.

• Facilities staff to follow the annual district maintenance schedules and perform the annual Facility Inspection Tool (FIT).

• Maintain adequate custodial/maintenance staffing.

• All staff and partnering agencies support GSD’s  ‘Clean Campus Campaign’ by eliciting student involvement in recycling, routine litter clean-up, beautification projects, etc.