INSPIRE (Instruct, Nurture, Support, Promote, Interest, Restore, Elevate) Students

The Stratford Board of Education proposes to implement INSPIRE (Instruct, Nurture, Support,
Promote, Interest, Restore, Elevate) Students. The purpose is to develop a program to address three of the top predictors of school violence: delinquent/antisocial behavior, ADHD or ADHD-like symptoms, and childhood maltreatment. This program will start in grades five and six in the first year and expand to grades seven through 12 in years two and three in the public schools in the town of Stratford, CT. Project activities include hiring one school social worker or counselor in year one and two additional school social workers and/or counselors in years two and three; and
one part-time teacher in year one expanding to full time in years two and three. The staff who are hired will begin working with elementary school-age students in grades five and six who have received in-school or out-of-school suspensions or engaged in acts of violence or who have engaged in behavior that, if continued, could lead to an in-school or out-of-school suspension or act of violence. The primary activities of INSPIRE Students will include the following evidence-based strategies: creating a team to engage in high-touch case management for students; training
school-based teams, starting with the elementary school level, in restorative climate and practices
informed by trauma-related care; and support of students' cultures and languages in order to create and sustain a positive overall school climate.