‘Wraparound’ at The Deck House School

Current educational research defines ‘Wraparound’ as a planning process that aims to include multiple stakeholders and community resources in the interest of helping struggling students (Eber, Sugai, Smith, & Scott, 2002). The ‘Wraparound’ process works with students’ strengths and interests to design individualized programs to achieve outcomes agreed upon by family, student, and school. Each student’s multi-dimensional and comprehensive program may include opportunities to make social and academic gains, realize personal goals, improve personal relations, and engage in extracurricular and career-oriented activities.

The Deck House School appropriates the key components of the ‘Wraparound’ process as follows:

WRAPAROUND COMPONENT (Eber, Sugai, Smith, & Scott, 2002)	PURPOSE	THE DECK HOUSE SCHOOL’S PROGRAMS
Community based	Utilize diverse -educational contexts across multiple, local settings.	·      Community network extends from The Deck House School to the Mid-Coast Maine area. ·      Academic, Life, Co-curricular and Community Service Programs connect our students with key people and learning opportunities in Mid-Coast Maine locations.
Individualized, strength-based, needs-driven	Custom tailor supports for the whole student.	·      Academic classes utilize individualized discussions and needs-based tutorials. We offer rigorous and Advanced Placement (AP) courses. ·      Life program activities such as planning and cooking meals encourage students to assume responsibility for community as well as individual needs. ·      Co-curricular activities allow students to develop their strengths, and interests, by participating in the livelihoods of their mentors. ·      Community Service activities offer valuable leadership and work experience.
Families as full and active partners	Communicate regularly with parents.	The Head of School offers weekly/bi-monthly phone appointments with parents. The Deck House School respects the differences in the ways families define their roles and participate in the boarding school experience. We believe that family-school collaboration is an essential element of student success. (Minke & Anderson, 2005)
Flexibility	Offer proactive, programmatic flexibility.	·      Flexibility is our continuity at The Deck House School across the Academic, Life, Co-curricular, and Community Service Programs. ·      The Deck House School directs its formal and informal community resources/supports to best serve/meet its students’ needs.
Unconditional commitment	Reward and recognize students. Emphasize “how” students succeeded rather than just that they did.	·      Special outings for students who are meeting expectations in the Academic Program. ·      Rewards lunches for students who are fulfilling their obligations in the Life Program. ·      Awards for individual accomplishments in the Co-curricular and Community Service Programs. ·      Teachers and role models who are unconditionally committed to the students and their plans.
Collaborative process, results in plan	Engage in broad conversations, create strength profiles and purposeful individual learning plans.	·      Gather information about the student’s interests and ideas to inform academic, behavioral, personal, and career goals across home, school, and community contexts. ·      Articulate the student’s strengths as a function of what he/she likes to do, for example: read to young children. ·      Create a succinct purpose statement to guide the team in helping the student realize his/her outcomes. ·      Design an individualized plan based on the student’s needs, which are most important to his success. Establish unique objectives and outcomes.
Oversee the process	Collect data. Provide systematic feedback and evaluation.	The Deck House School collects and analyzes student data across the Academic, Life, Co-curricular, and Community Service Programs, and may adjust students’ plans to suit new information.

The Deck House School’s ‘Wraparound’ is a needs-driven, individualized process, which connects the classroom to the community context, and gives students the opportunity to develop their strengths and interests in diverse, local settings. The school welcomes families as full and active partners in identifying students’ strengths and needs. Teachers and role models provide support by offering flexibility across the Academic, Life, Co-curricular, and Community Service Programs.  They are committed to creating, facilitating, and monitoring students’ plans, as well as realizing unique outcomes.  

Dr. Melinda Evelyn Browne, Head of School

References

Eber, L., Sugai, G., Smith, C.R., and Scott, T.M. (2002). Wraparound and positive behavioral  interventions and supports in the schools. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, 10(3), 171-180.

Minke, K.M., and Anderson, K.J. (2005). Family – school collaboration and positive behavior support. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 7(3), 181-185.