Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS)
Information for families
All students attending University City Schools are expected to exhibit appropriate school behaviors. Part of our teaching mission is to help students learn to work within the structures of the school environment to improve achievement for all. We cannot assume that children already know what appropriate school behavior looks like and sounds like; instead we need to provide explicit modeling and reinforcement of our expectations. We increase the probability of students exhibiting positive behaviors when we ensure the following necessary conditions:
- Sense of Autonomy, Belonging and Competency
- Clearly Established Expectations
- Consistent Routines and Procedures
- Organization and Timeliness
Our primary objective is to mold behavior so that we can maximize learning. When we can get students to clearly articulate expected behaviors and to have sense of self-efficacy and self-control, we will have put ourselves out of the “discipline business.” More importantly, the social skills that we teach will prepare children to be successful employees and citizens. That is our goal.
All of our schools have been implementing PBIS since 2008 with pilot schools as early as 2006. PBIS is a decision-making framework that guides selection, integration, and implementation of the best evidence-based academic and behavioral practices for improving important academic and behavior outcomes for all students. It is a proactive approach that requires schools to:
- Determine overarching school expectations.
- Explicitly identify behavioral expectations for all school settings (e.g. classroom, halls, cafeteria, playground, bus).
- Explicitly teach and encourage students to meet the identified expectations.
- Use data to evaluate the effectiveness of the program and to provide interventions for students who have not demonstrated success.
Each school develops their own set of overarching expectations:
| Julia Goldstein Early Childhood | Be Safe Be Kind Be Responsible |
| Barbara C. Jordan Elementary | Be Kind Be Respectful Be Responsible Be Cooperative Be Safe |
| Flynn Park Elementary | Flynn Park Lions are Safe, Positive, Respectful Learners throughout the day. |
| Jackson Park Elementary | Give Me Five: Be Safe Be Respectful Be Cooperative Be Peaceful Be Kind |
| Pershing Elementary | Rampage for Excellence: Respect the rights of others Act responsibly Make good choices Safety first |
| Brittany Woods Middle School | SOAR: Safe, Openness, Achiever, Respect |
| University City High School | U-Roar: Unity, Respect, On Target, Above & Beyond, Responsibility |
| Lieberman Learning Center | Be: Kind, Responsible, Safe |
Additional information about the implementation of PBIS is available on each individual school webpage. The matrix of behavioral expectations for all settings should be posted and PBIS rewards, recognitions and acknowledgements should also be available after the start of the school year.
Schools can apply to the National PBIS governing body for recognition of program fidelity.
Bronze Award recipients in U. City include the following for these particular years:
- Julia Goldstein Early Childhood in 2010
- Barbara C. Jordan Elementary in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2016
- Jackson Park Elementary (pilot school) in 2006, 2007 and 2014
- Flynn Park Elementary in 2015 and 2016
- Pershing Elementary in 2012 and 2016
- Brittany Woods Middle in 2014
Silver Award recipients in U. City include the following for these particular years:
- Julia Goldstein Early Childhood in 2014, 2015
- Barbara C. Jordan Elementary in 2014, 2015
- Pershing Elementary in 2014
- Brittany Woods Middle in 2015
Gold Award recipients in U. City include the following for these particular years:
- Pershing Elementary in 2015
PBIS banner shows overarching expectations for each school in the District.