A Guide to Writing and Tracking Meaningful Individualized Service Plans

Format

Individual Presentation

First Presenter's Institution

Options Charter Schools

Second Presenter's Institution

Options Charter Schools

Third Presenter's Institution

NA

Fourth Presenter's Institution

NA

Fifth Presenter's Institution

NA

Location

Vernon

Strand #1

Social & Emotional Skills

Relevance

The proposal addresses “heart” in developing the social and emotional skills of at-risk youth by addressing processes for authentic goal setting, discussion of support measures, timely review, and adjustment of goals or supports if needed throughout the school year.

Brief Program Description

This session will share the journey Options Charter Schools’ has been on over the last 10 years to develop a more authentic method of writing and tracking Individualized Service Plans for high school students. Participants will walk away with applicable tools and ideas on how they can impact an improvement on the service plans at their school or organization.

Summary

The goal of this workshop is to help practitioners develop policies and procedures to improve the writing and tracking of meaningful individualized service plans. Options Charter Schools is a free public high school with two campuses established in 2002 and 2006 serving approximately 200 students at each campus in central Indiana. Our mission, at Options, is centered on helping at-risk students reach the ultimate goal of graduation and preparedness for college or a career. The students that enroll at Options meet a minimum of one of the five criteria for alternative education in Indiana: (1) Intend to withdraw or have withdrawn from school before graduation; (2) Have failed to comply academically and would benefit from instruction offered in a manner different from the manner of instruction available in a traditional school; (3) Are parents or expectant parents and are unable to regularly attend the traditional school; (4) Are employed and the employment is necessary for support and interferes with a part of the instructional day; or (5) Are disruptive (as defined in IC 20-10.1-4.6-1.6).

Every student enrolled in our program has an individualized service plan (ISP) that tracks items such as their incoming and current risk, incoming and current positive assets, testing data, goals in academics, behavior, and social emotional, and the support roles various stakeholders are responsibility for maintaining. Participants in this workshop will learn the steps Options takes to ensure authentic data is collected to inform an initial ISP as well as how we ensure the plans continue to be authentic and adaptive to the changes students may experience over the year. Options has grown into the current policies and developed the current tools being used to aid in this over the last several years. We have seen a significant increase in both qualitative and quantitative data tracked each year. Students, their families, and staff members have all reported that the new policies and tools have made what once was a very disconnected “piece of paper in a file somewhere” become a living document that the student has access and ownership in ensuring that it is intentionally reflective of the their current status and their goals for both the immediate and long-term.

Evidence

Having good policies, procedures, and tools to ensure students are receiving appropriate and authentic service plans affects a wide range of school data. Since the implementation of these procedures, Options has seen an increase in many areas of their accountability data such as credit attainment rates, number of recovery credits earned per student per semester and percentage of students showing above average growth from fall to spring in reading, language, and math skills.

Biographical Sketch

Michelle Walden: Michelle has been an educator, working in an alternative high school charter school setting, since 2006. She began her career teaching science at Options Charter School- Noblesville. She fell in love with the work being done through Options and returned to school to earn her administrator's license. She has served as teacher leader, building principal and today, Michelle is the Director of Schools for Options Charter Schools. She is passionate and determined to refine and share tools and processes to help the teaching teams at Options and any other school working with at-risk students work more efficiently.

Linda Cunningham: Linda has 16 years experience teaching at-risk teens; 6 in the Indiana Department of Corrections (Juvenile) and 10 at Options Charter School, a relationship based alternative school. Linda is now Director of Student Services for Options Charter Schools.

Keyword Descriptors

Individualized Service Plans, tracking, goal, SMART

Presentation Year

2017

Start Date

3-8-2017 11:15 AM

End Date

3-8-2017 12:30 PM

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Mar 8th, 11:15 AM Mar 8th, 12:30 PM

A Guide to Writing and Tracking Meaningful Individualized Service Plans

Vernon

This session will share the journey Options Charter Schools’ has been on over the last 10 years to develop a more authentic method of writing and tracking Individualized Service Plans for high school students. Participants will walk away with applicable tools and ideas on how they can impact an improvement on the service plans at their school or organization.