THE ARC'S CAROUSEL CHILDREN'S SERVICES TO BECOME FIRST POSITIVE BEHAVIOR SUPPORTS PRESCHOOL IN NEW YORK STATE

When NYS Education Department (NYSED) regulations were updated last July they placed more emphasis on requiring schools to move away from aversive behavior interventions often utilized for people with disabilities, towards implementing positive behavior interventions and supports.  Being positive and proactive has been the philosophy and approach of The Arc of Delaware County’s programs and services for over 40 years, and staff and leadership at The Arc are pleased to hear that NYSED is offering schools the necessary tools and support to move in this direction. 

Since the beginning of the school year, The Arc’s Carousel Children’s Services program, serving children ages 3-5 in an integrated preschool setting, has been fine tuning its positive, proactive practices by implementing a new system made available to all preschool and public school systems through NYSED, known as Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS).  Through PBIS, Carousel Children’s Services staff is creating a positive school climate where students are learning at unprecedented rates, mastering social and emotional outcomes, and fostering positive relationships. 

What attracted Carousel Children’s Services to PBIS is that it offers a formalized systematic approach to implementing a positive behavior approach in a school setting, is easy to follow, and free.  PBIS provides evidence-based practices and a clearly defined data informed decision making process for improving behavior outcomes for all students, regardless of ability level.   Beverly Tuthill, Carousel Children’s Services Director shares “The beauty of the program is with the coaching and support of a PBIS Behavior Specialist from BOCES, the Carousel team was able to decide the best way to implement PBIS; it isn’t a cookie cutter program.  What works best for one school might not necessarily work for another.  We’ve found it is very adaptable to our unique structure and needs.”

The Carousel team is making great strides having just begun the process in September.  They have regular implementation meetings with the PBIS Behavior Specialist to talk about progress and discuss goals and objectives.  One area of current focus is on teaching positive behaviors in the classroom, with the support of various teaching tools provided by PBIS.   They expect to kick off the new school year in September with the full PBIS system in place.

Parents, parent groups, teachers, school administrators, and boards who would like to see Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports in action locally can contact Beverly Tuthill, Carousel Children’s Services Director, at (607)746-4240 to schedule a visit to the Carousel Program.  You may also contact Stacey Smith, PBIS Behavior Specialist at the State Education Department’s Regional Special Education Technical Assistance Support Center, at (607)766-3777 to learn more about PBIS, or visit www.nyspbis.org

PBIS Specialist Stacey Smith guides the Carousel Children’s Services team and leadership of Delhi Campus Child Care Center through each step of the PBIS process.  Pictured left to right: Lisa Nunley, Sibel Finn, and Beverly Tuthill of all CCS, PBIS Specialist Stacey Smith of BOCES, Kristina Anderson of CCS, and Karen Wallace, Director of the Delhi Campus Child Care Center.