• Attendance Rates
• Discipline Rates

• Socio-Economic Factors (employment, changing family structures)
• Families in Crisis (mental, emotional, financial)
• Substance Abuse/Addiction

Key Challenge #1: Families in Crisis (mental, physical, emotional, financial)

Nearly 25% of our students qualify for free and reduced lunch, reflecting the socio-economic concerns many families are facing.  Challenges contributing to families in crisis include substance abuse and a lack of or access to mental health programs resulting in excessive absenteeism or truancy.  Since these challenges have a direct impact on students’ readiness and availability to learn, our school community is focused on recognizing and rewarding students for positive decision-making, increasing daily attendance, self-regulation skills, and community-building efforts.

Our MDS3 Survey Results from 2017-2018 as well as End-of-Year (EOY) School-Wide Information System (SWIS) discipline data influenced our decision to adopt the use of Restorative Practices at Jacobsville, specifically Community Building Circles, to further promote "connectedness" between students and staff as well as safety/ trust.  We will utilize Community Building Circles in every classroom every day to build relationships and Restorative Practices to repair relationships.  At Jacobsville, our teachers focus on recognizing and reinforcing positive behaviors as well as forming and restoring relationships through perspective-taking and conflict resolution strategies to reduce discipline referrals.  These practices create a sense of community rooted in caring, civil discourse, and a shared understanding of how one’s actions affect others.  Fostering a sense of community and building student-staff and student-student relationships improves attendance, a secondary benefit to Restorative Practices. (Indicator 3) 

Changing family structures, students and parents/guardians mental health needs, and the effects of addiction influence both the attendance and discipline data for many students.  Our school partners with Thrive Behavioral Health, to provide mental health and support services for students and families on-site.  In some cases, Thrive provides intensive wrap-around support and modeling of strategies and interventions in the students’ homes. (Indicator 10)

• Access (or lack of access) to community health-related programs
• Less diversity (race, ethnicity, linguistic, growing socioeconomic variances)

Key Challenge #2:  Increased Need for Empathy and Opportunities to Reflect on Diverse Perspectives/ Experiences

The IB PYP framework provides an opportunity for students to learn about, research and appreciate diverse perspectives, think critically and globally, and take action to improve their community as local and global citizens.  Through Restorative Circles as well as IB learning engagements, provocations, and summative assessments, Jacobsville students are provided authentic opportunities to think critically about their perspective, reflect on their perspective in relationship to others, develop empathy and take action toward promoting more equitable and collaborative practices to solve real-world problems.  A close-knit, multi-generational community provides the opportunity to explore diverse perspectives, nurture open-minded thinkers, and emphasize the importance of equity and globally-minded citizenship. (Indicators 3 and 11)