Sixteen schools within the Morongo Unified School District have been recognized by the state for their continued work on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, or PBIS.
PBIS is a nationally recognized research-based tiered framework intended to support students’ behavior, academic, social, emotional, and mental health by creating positive school environments. The PBIS Awards are given annually to schools that demonstrate excellence in implementing positive behavioral support systems, improving school climate, and reducing disciplinary incidents. PBIS includes three tiers of support. The first tier primarily involves creating visible school-wide expectations for all students. These expectations are supported with positive reinforcements, like golden tickets or other recognitions. Tier 2 supports include group counseling and other systems. Tier 3 primarily involves individualized support systems.
This year, ten schools in Morongo Unified School District received the highest honor, Platinum, including Black Rock High School, Condor Elementary, Joshua Tree Elementary, Morongo Valley Elementary, Palm Vista Elementary, Yucca Mesa Elementary, Yucca Valley Elementary, Yucca Valley High School La Contenta Middle School and Landers Elementary. Three schools received distinct honors at the Gold level, including Friendly Hills Elementary, Twentynine Palms Elementary and Onaga Elementary. Silver status was received by Oasis Elementary, Twentynine Palms Junior High School and Twentynine Palms High School received Bronze recognition.
The PBIS proactive approach to behavior management involves shifting the focus to positive reinforcement to encourage advanced student behaviors. Schools that implement PBIS effectively often see a reduction in disciplinary referrals and an improvement in academic outcomes.
