Each year, CIS’ team assesses the needs of each of our school partners. Working directly with school leadership, we evaluate priorities and develop annual school goals.
Our team members then tailor our supports to meet those goals.
In our 40 Intensive schools, CIS Student Supports Managers connect schools with community partners, conduct group services, and provide additional resources to students one-on-one – all based on school needs.
Annual needs assessments help CIS best ensure that our work is tailored, data-driven, and impactful.
After decades of supporting students and building close relationships across the district, our team has gained insight into small groups that meet student need and can be implemented with evidence-based curriculum.
“A strong, intentional, and evidenced-based curriculum is essential to student success,” said Dr. Jackie Salazar, CIS’ Senior Director of Intensive Student Supports. “It provides a consistent, structured foundation for teaching students how to understand and manage their emotions, build healthy relationships, navigate challenges, and make responsible decisions.”
This school year, CIS Student Supports Managers are leading four curriculum-based groups:
Emotional Regulation
DBT Skills in Schools is an evidence-based curricula that helps young people manage their emotions and improve their learning. The curriculum teaches important skills in mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.
One Student Supports Manager, Ms. Hernandez, has an eighth grader who has been a part of her DBT Skills in Schools group for the last two years. He opted to stay in the group this year because of the skills he has gained and the lessons he has learned.
“I was pleasantly surprised and expressed my admiration to my student in choosing to challenge himself,” Ms. Hernandez said about his decision. “I look forward to how he continues to mature and grow.”
Grief and Loss
Using the Rainbows for All Children curriculum (which is a newer community partner), CIS leads small groups for students navigating grief and loss. The curriculum guides young people through the stages of grief, whether it’s a move, the loss of a loved one, or other life event, and provides guided activities where students can explore their feelings and experiences.
On the Southwest Side, Student Supports Manager Ms. Herrera helped students create grounding rocks during the curriculum’s Weathering the Storm section.
High School Transition
In each high school, Student Supports Managers lead ‘Freshmen Rising’ groups based on the University of Chicago’s Success Bound curriculum. These groups ensure that ninth graders have the support they need to transition smoothly to high school and stay on track to graduation.
Research shows that ninth grade is a critical year for a young person’s academic success, and the group provides students with academic, interpersonal, social, and emotional skills that will serve them throughout high school. Students also gain leadership opportunities, goal-setting, and monthly check-ins with a trusted adult.
On the West Side, Student Supports Manager Ms. Howard leads a small group for freshmen where she focuses on building skills and community.
Trauma
For students who have experienced trauma, CIS leads a skills-based group intervention using the National Child Traumatic Stress Network’s curriculum, Support for Students Exposed to Trauma (SSET). Trauma can range from violence and abuse to natural disasters and separation from loved ones, and this curriculum empowers students with skills to cope with stress responses.
Every school-based team member is trained in these evidence-based curricula.
In August, they received refresher trainings and learned best practices as they began the new school year, and in October, CIS’ Director of Clinical and SEL Services, Lo Patrick, led the development of a Curriculum Resource Hour to support peer learning and sharing of skills.
Student Supports Managers learned tips and tricks from their peers, including recruitment, parent engagement, and assessment to help them with implementation.
“The skills students learn become more than isolated lessons,” Dr. Salazar said. “They become a shared language and daily practice that strengthen school culture, support academic achievement, and promote student well-being long after they leave our program.”
