To foster a school environment where students feel welcomed and interconnected; acquire social-emotional skills and academic tools; and increase positive school relations and attendance.
CVUSD Transformational Model Objectives
Provide district staff with Professional Development on the MTSS components of: PBIS, Transformational Learning, and Restorative Practices;
Build a district community providing Social-Emotional Learning while modeling targeted behavior interventions and utilizing common language to establish community expectations;
Model, Teach and Acknowledge tools to Self-Regulate, strengthen Coping Skills for all CVUSD community members in order to improve mental wellbeing and increase academic success;
Provide a healthy learning environment for students and staff to build positive relationships and interpersonal skills.
Coachella Valley Unified School District began developing the Transformational Model in 2017 with a team made up of Teachers, Administrators, Therapists, Parents and Students.
OUR FOCUS:
Teaching the students of the Coachella Valley Unified School District to be able to:
Adapt to new environments/experiences
Connect with and value themselves, their community and culture
Restore relationships if harm has occurred.
Transformational Components
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Curriculum:
Spring of 2021 a team of district teachers, counselors, consulting therapists, parents and administrators worked collectively to develop the concept of the Transformational SEL lessons that include 3 main components.
Focus on the value of each student's Significant Purpose in order to value their roles within their communities.
Focus on building communities and provide opportunities for conflict resolution and restorative practices.
Focus on CVUSD’s PBIS Universal Expectations that teach students to adapt to the educational environment.
TK & Kindergarten
Grades 1-6
Middle & High School
Social Emotional ZonesAll students in the CVUSD District learn about their Social Emotional Zones. This concept was developed to teach students if they are in an emotional zone where learning can happen, or if their emotions are getting in the way of learning. Zones are modified into age appropriate concepts for:
Early Learners (TK-Kinder)
Primary (1st-6th grade)
Secondary (7th-12th grade)
From TK through 12th grade, students are taught to start identifying their emotions. They are given vocabulary to identify and express what they are feeling, and which zone they fall into. The goal is to be in the Yellow or Green Zones, which are considered "Learning Zones". Red and Blue zones mean that a student's emotional state has made it where learning is not occurring.
All students are taught a variety of coping skills and strategies in the CVUSD SEL Lessons that help them self-regulate their emotions, in order to move towards the best learning zone.
Coping Skills & Strategies include:
Breathing Exercises
Use of Fidgets or Manipulatives
Grounding Activities
Mental Focus Activities
SEL Mini Lessons
Students are provided with coping skills and strategies as well as connections to the world around them. Lessons include:
Emotional Zone Check- In
Self Regulation Techniques
Culturally Relevant Themes
Mindfulness Activities/Skills
Restorative Questions
Social Awareness
Shared Experiences
Social Expectations
All TK-6th grade students receive SEL Lessons daily for 20 minutes.
All Secondary students receive a 20 minute lesson weekly.
Weekly Transformational Themes and Social Skills
1st - 12th Grade
Themes and Social Skills (TK & Kinder)
All 7 of our CVUSD Secondary Schools an 1 Elementary School (Oasis) host a Wellness Center. Centers focus on guiding students to self-regulate in order to become more productive and academically successful in the classroom. Students are provided with a variety of skills, strategies, and workshops to improve their over all wellbeing and mental health. Student’s may use the QR code on the flyers posted around the campus to request a visit, sign up for classes or they may drop in for emergency purposes.
ELEMENTARY WELLNESS CENTERS
Wellness Centers are currently available at 1 elementary school:
Oasis ElementaryLATINO COMMISSION THERAPISTS
Latino Commission Therapists are available at all 21 school sites and at their 1st Street Offices in Coachella.
Therapists are here to support our students in need of a need for more advanced Tier 2 & Tier 3 interventions and support.
CVUSD Wellness Team
The CVUSD Wellness Team is made up of Wellness Lead Teachers, Student Support Services Staff, Behavior Technicians, CV Youth Mentors, and Crisis Intervention Liaisons who work in collaboration with the sites Counselors and Administration teams to provide wrap around services available to all students on their campuses.
Calming Binders
In 2023, the Student Support Services Office began developing how to bring Wellness into the elementary classrooms. This lead to the creation of the CVUSD Calming Binders, a Self-Regulation tool that will be provided for classroom teachers to guide students through strategies and coping skills to get back into an academic learning zone.
Calming Binders are for the elementary school classroom, where students self identify when they need to use it. Students follow a (worksheet) to guide them through identifying their feelings. Students select 3 activities to complete and then will re-evaluate their feelings. Once the cycle is completed, the student will return to regular class participation.
The skills that our student have learned can transfer into everyday life and help students become well rounded individuals, ready to participate in both their school and community.
Publication of the initial 100 binders was funded by the 2023 Anderson Children's Grant. Printing was completed in December of 2023, and binders were assembled with their supplemental materials and delivery to school sites began the first week of February, 2024.
The 2024-2025 school year should see a roll out of binders to every elementary school classroom in the district.
Dedication:
This binder has been developed and created with great purpose, love and care for the student’s of the Coachella Valley Unified School District. Know that you all have a Significant Purpose and are all connected to the CVUSD community. Your emotions are a part of you and we all have them. Know that you are supported and loved and that we are dedicated to being your supports and guides as you come to understand yourselves and your greater purpose in life.
Created By Student Support Services:
Director Julisa Hernandez
Coordinator Megan Choate Ramirez
District Support Counselor Karina Vega
Administrative Assistant Francisca Arreola
Supported By CVUSD Leadership:
Superintendent Dr. Luis Valentino
Assistant Superintendent Ed. Services Dr. Frances Esparza
Assistant Superintendent Business Services Mayala Salcedo
Assistant Superintendent Human Resources Maria McLeod
Supported By CVUSD Board of Education:
President Adonis Galarza-Toledo
Vice President Jesus Gonzalez
Clerk Jocelyn Vargas
Trustee Valerie Garcia
Trustee Trinidad Arredondo
Trustee Joey Acuña Jr.
Trustee Sylvia Paz
Purpose:
The Purpose of this binder is to fulfill the district’s goals of meeting the needs of the whole child. The Coachella Valley Unified School District will support all students, at all times: Academically, Behaviorally, Socially and Emotionally.
Goal 1 - CVUSD Student Support Services will increase students ability to self regulate their emotions and behaviors through Social Emotional Learning.
Goal 2 - CVUSD Student Support Services will provide students with safe spaces and trained support staff to address Social/Emotional needs.
Goal 3 - CVUSD Student Support Services will provide students with the tools for use in empowering students to self monitor and regulate and be in control of their Social Emotional wellbeing.
Goal 4 - CVUSD Student Support Services will promote students being academically ready to learn by providing access to SEL self regulation strategies.
By creating a community of students and staff who understand how emotions can impact learning, as well as the tools that can be used to quickly assess and regulate those emotions, the community can assist in creating the most ideal learning environment. By understanding that everyone’s emotions can both negatively or positively impact the learning environment, the teacher develops the community and culture of the classroom, and as a team, they can work together to ensure that everyone has the best opportunity to learn.
The Coachella Valley School District Student Support Services offices are working to develop a system to bring Mental Health Wellness where it is needed. This lead to not only the creation of the Calming Binders for elementary schools, but the concept of the Wellness on the Go carts. In collaboration with the Anderson Children's Foundation grant, the concept was developed to train staff throughout the district offices on the use of the WELLNESS ON THE GO carts and to begin the first stages of school roll out. The initial 20 carts were funded by the 2023 Anderson Grant.
Wellness On The Go
The concept of Wellness On The Go was developed to allow for the training of staff and students on the use of self regulation tools, and the ability to bring these tools to the person/people/location of need.
The Wellness on the Go Carts were the brain child of the Student Support Services Crisis Intervention Team. Having to travel to multiple locations to support those in crisis, it became apparent that a crisis can happen anytime, anywhere. Proper tools, strategies and training of not only the students, but the staff would allow for on site, mobile Wellness Centers.
Carts include:
sound machines
oil diffusers
water fountains
sand timers
fidgets and manipulatives
coloring posters and markers/colored pencils,
sand gardens
Each cart is equipped with instructional sheets explaining how to use and the benefits of each of the tools, as well as strategies that can be used in self regulation of ones emotions.
District Office staff training is scheduled to begin the first week of February 2023, with carts going out to our first 8 pilot school sites by the end of February.
WELLNESS ON THE GO (PHASE 2 & 3)
Phase 2 of the implementation, is to re-apply for the Anderson Grant in order to place a WELLNESS ON THE GO cart at every school site, as well as Calming Binders in every classroom across the Coachella Valley Unified School District.
Phase 3 is to work in collaboration with the district grant writer to fund WELLNESS ON WHEELS, a mobile Wellness Center that can be rolled out to school sites for both educational purposes, but also as a Crisis Command Center to assist with Mental Health Support during crisis situations at a school site.
What does the Transformational Model look like in our school?
ADAPT
Adapt to new environments/experiences.
Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
Targeted Behaviors: Each school selects 3 behaviors for the year to target as a school site to improve academic success.
CVUSD Universal Expectations:
Be Safe
Be Respectful
Be Responsible
Behavior Matrix: Each school creates and teaches expected behaviors for specific locations and activities (ex. playground, library, cafeteria)
PBIS Leads: Each school has a teacher assigned as the schools PBIS lead.
PBIS Rewards: Schools use the PBIS Rewards app for students to earn points for demonstrating good behaviors. These points can be redeemed for reward prizes.
PBIS Social Skills: Student are provided with instruction on the 16 Social Skills that all students should know in order to be successful in the school environment
CONNECT
Connect and value themselves, their community and culture
Transformational Learning
Students at taught that they all have a Significant Purpose.
Lessons build connections to the communities the student belongs to:
Family
School
Community
Culture
Global Community
Lessons are focused around themes that build a sense of belonging and mutual respect, acknowledging that all people are unique and have value.
Schools host Transformational Group Circles. All circles are hosted by trained facilitators for various programs to support students in a smaller group setting. Groups include:
Xinachtli
Joven Noble
Girasol
Community Building
RESTORE
Restore relationships if harm has occurred.
Restorative Justice
All classrooms are encouraged to participate in community building activities throughout the year.
The district is training staff in Harm & Conflict Circles to allow for conflict resolution.
Students (TK-12) are being taught to recognize their emotions and how to use coping skills and strategies to self regulate.
Whenever possible, mistakes are turned into teachable moments.
All sites utilize a Check In Check Out process to monitor and encourage positive behavioral changes.
Students returning to schools from placements are offered reintegration plans.
Students are encouraged to utilize forms restitution when harm has occurred.
The district utilizes a large variety of alternate means of correction.
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