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Thomas Holtzman spotlights student voices and PBIS progress as school pursues Tier 3 recognition
Summary
Thomas Holtzman Elementary presented student perspectives, PTO activities and data showing large reductions in office referrals after targeted interventions as the school seeks Tier 3 PBIS recognition; the board asked detailed questions about referral counts and intervention procedures.
At a Susquehanna Township School District meeting, Thomas Holtzman Elementary highlighted student experiences, parent-organized events and behavior interventions as staff said the school is pursuing Tier 3 recognition under its Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework.
Presenter (Thomas Holtzman staff) opened the building spotlight by noting current enrollment just under 800 students and a small rise in special education and English-language learner populations. Two students spoke: 11-year-old Tyler Boroski described school traditions such as the fundraiser field day "the best day ever," assemblies and the Hoot Hut school store, and Jolene Barriault said technology class and related-arts projects were among the reasons she values the school.
The presenter described academic structures and interventions, including a competency-based learning model in year three and a new "walk-to" math intervention. Staff said intervention groups run daily—54 for ELA and 54 for math—and that six instructional interventionists and an instructional coach support classroom teachers. The presenter said these targeted supports allow the school to "hyper target those students who have skill deficits and then quickly close those gaps."
Marie Rutherford, the school's PTO president, outlined PTO-sponsored events, saying trunk-or-treat participation had outgrown a single-school event and noting, "we had over 2,000 students this past trunk retreat," and that PTO fundraising supports assemblies and the book fair.
On PBIS, staff said the school is seeking Tier 3 recognition (which the presenter said would be the first time in school history for Thomas Holtzman). The presenter described tiered supports—Tier 1 buildingwide expectations, Tier 2 targeted plans and individualized Tier 3 interventions—and said the advanced tiers team (instructional staff, assistant principal, counselor, dean of students) uses data to design and adjust plans.
Board members pressed staff on the underlying data. The presenter discussed a January data snapshot showing some learners with up to 10 office referrals in that month and described case reviews in an advanced tiers meeting that led to individualized plans; presenters said examples in January-to-February follow-ups showed reductions such as 10 referrals down to 2 and 8 down to 1 after interventions. Staff cautioned that referral counts can combine different referral types (classroom, bus) and that the team reviews each student's incidents to determine appropriate interventions.
The school framed the PBIS push as both a student-support strategy and a building-recognition goal. Staff said the ultimate aim is to return learners to Tier 1 supports as quickly as appropriate and that the team will continue to use disaggregated data and non-evaluative classroom observations to refine supports.
Future steps noted during the spotlight include ongoing data pulls, continued collaboration with interventionists and instructional coaches, and follow-up reports to the board if Tier 3 application activities continue.
