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Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a school-based program that seeks to create an environment where appropriate behavior happens naturally so that optimal learning can occur.

The initiative is a Response to Intervention (RtI) framework that is geared toward improving the behavioral and mental well-being of the student at school and in the community. School-wide PBS offers training and technical assistance for school districts in the development and implementation of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports at the school-wide, classroom, targeted group and individual student levels.

Preventions and interventions at each level seek to make problem behavior less effective, efficient and relevant, and appropriate behavior more functional and rewarding (OSEP Technical Assistance Center for Positive Behavior Implementations and Supports, 2006a).

PBIS was first introduced to Louisiana as an individual behavior approach for students with severe behavior issues in 1993. In 2001, School-wide PBIS awareness workshops were completed throughout the state, and training for implementation of School-wide PBIS began in 2002. The Louisiana Department of Education continues to provide training and technical assistance to participating schools.

The Picard Center, in collaboration with Louisiana State University’s Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports Center, evaluates the implementation of PBIS in Louisiana school districts for the Louisiana Department of Education’s Office of School and Community Support. The evaluation includes use of the School Evaluation Tool (SET) to determine the level of School-wide PBIS implementation at the universal prevention level, as well as a secondary source data analysis to characterize each school and make comparisons to Louisiana norms and averages.

For more information on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, visit www.pbis.org.