Brief Biography

Dr. Laurel Kinard is the director of Student Assistance Programs for the Cobb County School District. In the field of education for 35 years, Dr. Kinard worked as a school psychologist for 26 of those years before moving to an administrative position which includes overseeing the provision of PBIS training and district-level support.

Kelly McNabb is the district PBIS coach for the Cobb County School District. Mrs. McNabb has been an educator for 15 years and worked in special student services as a teacher, behavior specialist, and program specialist before moving into her coaching role, working with school teams to create and execute implementation plans.

Jaime Espinosa is the co-coordinator of PBIS in the Office of Student Discipline in Gwinnett County Public Schools. With 30 years in education, Mr. Espinosa has served as a teacher, counselor, and school administrator with 14 years as principal. His current position includes consulting with local schools in discipline matters, as well as furthering the implementation of PBIS in Gwinnett County.

Highest Degree of Presenter(s)

Laurel Kinard, Ph.D.

Kelly McNabb, Ed.S.

Jaime Espinosa, MA

Presentation Abstract

Sustainability is a widely recognized and researched component for continued positive outcomes of a school or district’s implementation of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Many schools and districts find that around two years after initial implementation, sometimes even with past positive outcomes, implementation efforts can lose effectiveness and teams lose momentum. Data may show that schools are implementing with poor fidelity or focusing on only limited elements of the PBIS framework. Drawing on the body of published research, knowledge and tools, two large school districts in the metropolitan Atlanta area collaborated in their efforts to reignite the commitment and efforts of their district and school teams.

With a large number of schools at varying levels of implementation it can be challenging to not only identify the diverse causes of stagnation, but to analyze the systemic factors that may be contributing to diminished commitment. A review of the research on sustainability (McIntosh et al., 2014) and use of available PBIS assessment tools can empower districts to differentiate their support to schools and provide schools strategies to reinvigorate their school’s commitment while increasing family and community participation. In this presentation we will discuss our experiences with a variety of causes and some practical solutions to help maintain the momentum of the initial success.

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How to Sustain Excellence: Reigniting Your Mojo

Sustainability is a widely recognized and researched component for continued positive outcomes of a school or district’s implementation of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Many schools and districts find that around two years after initial implementation, sometimes even with past positive outcomes, implementation efforts can lose effectiveness and teams lose momentum. Data may show that schools are implementing with poor fidelity or focusing on only limited elements of the PBIS framework. Drawing on the body of published research, knowledge and tools, two large school districts in the metropolitan Atlanta area collaborated in their efforts to reignite the commitment and efforts of their district and school teams.

With a large number of schools at varying levels of implementation it can be challenging to not only identify the diverse causes of stagnation, but to analyze the systemic factors that may be contributing to diminished commitment. A review of the research on sustainability (McIntosh et al., 2014) and use of available PBIS assessment tools can empower districts to differentiate their support to schools and provide schools strategies to reinvigorate their school’s commitment while increasing family and community participation. In this presentation we will discuss our experiences with a variety of causes and some practical solutions to help maintain the momentum of the initial success.