November 21, 2014 Facilitator webinar: Interconnected Systems Framework ( ISF) Replication

The monograph, Advancing Education Effectiveness: Interconnecting School Mental Health and School-wide Positive Behavioral Support, clearly conveys the message that effective education is the primary goal and linking two important processes will be the strategy promoted to achieve this goal. The Interconnected systems Framework (ISF) is the proposed mechanism that can effectively link School Mental Health (SMH) and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) in order to leverage the individual strengths of each of these processes and produce enhanced teaching and learning environments through their strategic linkage.

The decision to advance a systems framework such as the ISF and to connect SMH and PBIS has theoretical, practical, and empirical support. This is especially important for any initiative that addresses the complex needs of children and youth at risk for or experiencing emotional and behavioral challenges. For the last few decades researchers, practitioners, administrators, and families have faced a system described as “broken” when investigating or seeking services for children with mental health needs. Services have been described as fragmented, operating in silos, and narrow in focus. These observations led to the development of broad systems approaches such as the System of Care for Children’s Mental Health and Student Learning Supports: Addressing Barriers to Learning as well as others. The developers of the ISF have observed the successes and continued challenges facing the systems initiatives in the field and continue to refine and improve their framework. ISF has been informed by the need to have an over-arching theoretical framework to guide the development of an infrastructure to implement evidence-based interventions. The concepts that frame implementation science provide a conceptual foundation for the ISF. The challenge to move from theory to practice has been addressed by operationalizing the ISF mechanisms at the state, district, and school level.

Monograph: Advancing Education Effectiveness: Interconnecting School Mental Health and School-Wide Positive Behavior Support, edited by Susan Barrett, Lucille Eber, and Mark Weist