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Teachers and staff say Prescott’s Teach to Heal rollout is reducing restraints and boosting growth
Summary
District staff and Prescott teachers described classroom changes under the Teach to Heal trauma‑responsive program, citing examples of calmer classrooms, a student with zero restraints after intervention, and classroom growth metrics (one teacher reported 153% of expected annual typical growth).
Prescott Elementary teachers and district staff told the Dubuque board May 18 that the district’s Teach to Heal trauma‑responsive initiative is producing early improvements in classroom climate and student outcomes as the program moves from training to year‑one implementation.
Brenda Duvel and Chris Nugent described Teach to Heal as a multiyear, systemwide effort that changes adult practices, routines and building culture to support students’ regulation and engagement. The district has three buildings in full implementation this year (Prescott and two others) and plans to add four elementary schools next year.
Prescott teachers and support staff gave concrete examples. Second‑grade teacher Natalie Mitchell said Teach to Heal emphasizes predictable routines and student leadership while treating behavior as communication; she told the board her class’s “progress to annual typical growth reached 153%” and that 89% of her students met their growth targets this year.
Sarah Hill, a Prescott regulate‑and‑return (R&R) interventionist, described intensive, individualized support for students with significant behavioral challenges. Hill said one student who previously required repeated confinement, restraint and showed physical aggression recorded zero restraints after the year of Teach to Heal interventions, and she characterized that outcome as “a huge win.”
Presenters said Teach to Heal includes building‑level practices such as calm starts, brief co‑regulation breaks (“30 seconds of calm”), targeted R&R staff and changes to transitions and breakfast routines to reduce dysregulation. District staff stressed the initiative is year one of a three‑to‑five‑year implementation and described ongoing coaching visits by Teach to Heal trainers and plans for leadership sessions to sustain the work.
What’s next: district leaders said they will continue coaching, expand cohorts next year and focus on leadership development and system sustainability as Teach to Heal scales across more buildings.
