Opinion: Customized care for Collier County Public Schools students

Superintendent Kamela Patton, Ph.D.

The new school year is off to an exciting start. Tomorrow’s innovators and leaders are diligently learning now in order to carve out their unique paths in life. The central tenet of knowing each student’s needs and situation is at the core of our Social Emotional Learning (SEL) priorities for the 2019-20 school year. The Collier County Public Schools Office of Curriculum and Instruction helps our more than 50 schools care for the academic and mental health of our students. 

Growing research reveals the prevalence of chronic absence and its sweeping role in student achievement. Chronic absence — missing 10% or more school days for any reason — can translate into third-graders unable to master reading, sixth-graders failing subjects, and ninth-graders dropping out of high school. Just two absences a month translate to chronic absenteeism by the end of the school year. We’re not willing to wait until it gets to that point.

New this year, school administrators pair “Connection Coaches” — a teacher, coach or office staff member — to meet weekly with students who are chronically absent. The "meeting" can be simply a casual, quick conversation in a hallway. All students need to know someone looks out for them and cares whether they come to school. “Connection Coaches” are enhancing last year’s new “check-in” initiative that focused on checking in with students new to the district or transfers between schools at 30- and 60-day intervals. We want all of our 48,000 students to be on time, all day, every day.

Kamela Patton

“Handle with Care” is another SEL priority at all CCPS schools. This focus on student safety and mental well-being alerts staff to a student who has experienced a recent traumatic event. Divorce, death in the family, or a lost pet are just a few of the emotionally distressing scenarios our students experience. “Handle with Care” encourages teachers to extend support, look for changes in personality or disengagement and, if needed, use the expertise of the school counselor or psychologist for assistance.

Some of the loneliest times for children often occur outside the classroom, so CCPS placed “Buddy Benches” at all elementary schools to promote an inclusive school community. A student can sit on the bench when he/she feels lonely at recess. Student friendship ambassadors are trained to reach out to a classmate using the bench and invite him/her to play. The bright blue Buddy Benches are easily recognizable, so if kids transfer schools they know where to go if they need a friend. 

“We Dine Together” clubs at all middle and high schools foster social awareness, acts of kindness, and resilience. At lunchtime, student members look for people sitting alone and sit with them. We hope these engaging actions lead students to better assimilate into the school culture, form friendships, and learn to accept one another.

Twice a month, we use a school-wide approach to build community and individual student resiliency. An influential school leader or student leader goes on the school-wide morning announcements to lead conversation and an activity around a video with an SEL theme. This allows students to discuss the real-world SEL application around age-appropriate topics.

A final priority is around gathering student voice as it relates to a student’s perception of school and self. How students grow in the areas of grit, resilience, self-efficacy, and sense of belonging is critical to enhancing life readiness skills regardless of the pathway the student chooses. These efforts lay the foundation for our CCPS strategic plan: graduating students who are college-, career- and life-ready.

Kamela Patton is superintendent of Collier County Public Schools.