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Student services highlights SEL, therapy dogs and rising McKinney‑Vento counts at curriculum committee
Summary
District student services staff told the Waunakee curriculum committee they are prioritizing social‑emotional learning, tracking a short universal mental‑health screener for 5th, 7th and 9th graders, running therapy‑dog visits, and reporting 27 McKinney‑Vento students with a halftime liaison added last year.
Student services staff presented a wide overview of supports to the Waunakee curriculum committee, emphasizing social‑emotional learning (SEL), universal screening and interventions for students in need.
The presenter (identified in the transcript as Lisa) said SEL is a district priority guided by CASEL standards and described efforts to monitor and intervene on attendance. She outlined a brief universal mental‑health screener administered in fifth, seventh and ninth grades and explained that students who flag as "extremely elevated risk" receive immediate follow‑up with the student and family. "It's a universal," she said, describing the screener as a 3–5 minute snapshot given on Chromebooks or phones.
Lisa described therapy dogs as a new, popular tier‑1 support: "Tucker Tuesdays" at Prairie and "Reagan" at Heritage, which staff and families have welcomed. On homelessness services, she cited the McKinney‑Vento federal law and reported a current district count of 27 students who lack a fixed nighttime residence, noting the number could rise into the high‑30s or 40s during the school year and that the district added a halftime McKinney‑Vento liaison/social worker last year.
She also reviewed EL (bilingual) programming and access testing, noting language‑growth timelines (often four to six years) and ongoing tracking by grade and cohort. On staffing, Lisa said counselors, psychologists, social workers and EL teachers compare favorably to peers but that nursing time is a key gap; she recommended increasing school‑nurse time and said the district may reallocate existing FTE rather than immediately request a new position.
The presentation closed with district priorities to increase capacity for SEL, and the committee moved on to a special education update and the Wanna Grow alternative program.
