Weare staff describe new "Eagle Center" to support students with disruptive or unsafe behavior at Center Woods

Center Woods staff on Dec. 17 told the Weare School Board they have launched an "Eagle Center," a tiered program of behavioral supports aimed at students whose disruptive or unsafe behaviors repeatedly interfere with their learning or the learning of others.

The presentation, given by Shannon Filion, behavior analyst at Center Woods, and Ariel Friedman, special-education case manager and Eagle Center teacher, explained that Eagle Center operates alongside the school's MTSS (multi-tiered system of supports) framework to provide short-term, individualized interventions intended to return students to full classroom participation.

School administrators said the program was created after a small number of students accounted for a disproportionate share of administrative behavior logs and support needs this fall. District administration reported 176 administrative behavior logs from the start of the school year through Dec. 16, compared with 103 logs for the same period last year; staff said 49% of this year's logged behaviors came from seven students, many of whom were new to the school this year.

Filion said MTSS remains the primary process for identifying need and arranging supports. "Tier 1 is universal instruction," she said in the meeting. "Tier 2 would be next with targeted support that could be in all different areas. And then also tier 3, which…