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Sen. Fillmore seeks one-time funds to expand We Are Friends social skills program after pilot results
Summary
Senator Fillmore and program leaders asked the committee for one-time funds to expand "We Are Friends," a social-skills curriculum piloted in Utah schools. Presenters cited BYU/University of Utah research showing large increases in positive self-talk and social behaviors in participating classrooms.
Senator Fillmore and program leaders asked the Education Committee to consider one-time funding to expand We Are Friends, a social-skills curriculum targeted at students with delayed social executive-function (for example, students with ADHD or autism spectrum characteristics).
Founder Andrea Johnson and practitioner presenters described results from research funded last year and conducted by BYU and the University of Utah. The program's preliminary findings, cited in handouts to the committee, included increases in positive self-talk (reported as a 407% increase in a special-education classroom example) and marked increases in self-regulation and prosocial behaviors in participating classrooms. Teacher survey responses showed strong interest in continuing to use the curriculum.
Nut graf: Presenters said early attendance-tracking indicates students with previously high absenteeism showed reduced social isolation by 48% in preliminary data, and teachers reported they could spend less class time addressing recurring behavioral disruptions and more on academics. Senator Fillmore said his personal experience with a student helped motivate the request and urged a small one-time appropriation to expand the program to more classrooms.
Teachers and a third-grade student gave live testimonials to the committee describing behavioral and classroom benefits. Panelists emphasized the program's focus on explicit social and emotional curriculum and said final attendance and outcome data would be available at the end of the school year.
Ending: Presenters asked the committee to fund expansion and to review final outcome data later in the year; no formal appropriation was adopted during the meeting.
