With Dr. Mark Staszkiewicz, Dr. Runge contracted with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education, and the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) to conduct a programmatic evaluation of PaTTAN’s School-Wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS) framework implemented in thirty-three schools across the Commonwealth from 2007 to 2009. SWPBS is a three-tiered approach to addressing the behavioral, social, emotional, and academic needs of all students across all school environments. The goal of SWPBS primary level prevention is to create a prosocial environment in which desirable student behavior is recognized and reinforced systematically and purposefully. At the secondary level of intervention, students who are at-risk for academic, behavioral, social, or emotional difficulties are provided additional levels of support. The tertiary level of intervention is student-centered and family-oriented and often results in positive behavior support plans and intensive wrap-around services for the student and family.

Drs. Runge and Staszkiewicz completed a comprehensive programmatic evaluation of Pennsylvania’s SWPBS framework, analyzing a variety of academic and behavioral data from cohort schools. Recently, these principal investigators secured a continuation of the contract to conduct the SWPBS programmatic evaluation for 2009–2010. Of particular note to the 2009–2010 investigation is the expansion of the initiative to an additional fifty schools, thus creating opportunities for more sophisticated data analyses.

Fifteen practicing school psychologists from Pennsylvania, Maryland, Illinois, Massachussets, South Carolina, and Georgia, all of whom are doctoral students, will present on a variety of topics, including curriculum-based measurement, non-discriminatory assessment, assessment of English language learners, and assessment of students at-risk for school dropout, among other topics. No registration is necessary and attendance is free.

Please click here for the attached presentation schedule.

Educational and School Psychology

This year’s theme will focus on the use of RtI to support students with behavior problems. Frank Gresham will conduct a full-day workshop on Thursday, July 16. Friday’s session will feature prominent school psychologists from Pennsylvania addressing local implementation issues regarding RtI and behavior. Coordinating this session will be Timothy Runge, assistant professor of School Psychology at IUP. Joining Dr. Runge on Friday will be Ronald A. Sudano, a nationally certified school psychologist and licensed psychologist, who is well known as an educational consultant with the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Registration will be from 8:30 to 9:00 a.m. on July 16. The institute will run from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on both days.

This special issue on school-to-work transition, published by the National Employment Counseling Association (a division of the American Counseling Association), also included an article by Levinson and program graduates Kristene Toomey (D.Ed.) and Eric Palmer (M.Ed.) titled “A Test of Holland’s theory of vocational personalities and work environments.”

Below is a list of IUP presenters and their presentation topics:

Faculty

Victoria Damiani
Joseph Kovaleski
Edward Levinson
Mark McGowan
Timothy Runge

Graduate Students

Ryan Conn
Kelly Fritz
Erin Haugh
Jackie Purcell
Caitlin Flinn

Alumni

Leigh Armistead
Laura Crothers
Steven Feifer
Denise Foley
Susan Gfroerer
Lisa Kilanowski-Press
Brandon Schultz

“High Ability but Underachieving: A Plan for Intervention”
Victoria Damiani

“Utilizing Curriculum-Based Assessment (CBM) for Gifted Support Services”
Caitlin Flinn and Victoria Damiani

“Determining Special Education Eligibility in a Response-to-Intervention System”
Joseph Kovaleski

“Decision-Making Processes in RTI Models: Practitioner and Research Perspectives”
Edward Shapiro, Joseph Kovaleski, Robert Rosenthal, and Amanda VanDerHeyden

“School Psychology Graduate Training in Vocational/Career Assessment and Transition”
Edward Levinson, Kelly Fritz, and Ryan Conn

“Role of Violence Risk Assessment in Comprehensive School Safety Plans”
Mark McGowan

“Statewide Efforts to Initiate School-Wide Positive Behavior Support”
Timothy Runge, Ronald Sudano, and Gregory Llewellyn

“Classroom Management Skills Used by Preschool and Elementary School Teachers”
Jackie Purcell, Erin Haugh, and Lynanne Black

“NASP Member State of Practice for Work with Sexual Minority Youth”
Lisa Kilanowski-Press and Lynanne Black

“An Update on the NASP Standards Revision—February 2009”
Barbara Bole Williams, Patti Harrison, Rhonda Armistead, Leigh Armistead, and Diane Smallwood

“Ethics for School Psychologists: A Problem-Solving Approach”
Leigh Armistead, Barbara Bole Williams, and Susan Jacob

“Symposium on School Psychology Supervision: Research From Experts to Interns”
Nancy Evangelista, Michael Curtis, Leigh Armistead, Alana Lopez, Paula Gill Lopez, Virginia Harvey, David Makin-Boyd, and Barbara Fischetti

“Larry and Martina: Simulated Psychoeducational Evaluations for Introductory Assessment Courses”
Leigh Armistead

“Relational and Social Aggression in Mediating Gender Role and Depression”
Laura Crothers, Jessica Blasik, and James Schreiber

“Interventions in the Basic Skill Areas of Reading, Math, and Written Language”
Steven Feifer

“Effective Transition Practices: Can Cognitive Tests Make a Difference?”
Denise Foley

“High-Stakes Testing: Deciding to Whom and When to Target Interventions”
Denise Foley and Jill McConaghy

“Improving Services for Students With Traumatic Brain Injuries”
Susan Gfroerer, and Sara Timms

“Staff Beliefs That Can Impact Systems Change”
Margo Gehring, Shelaina Brown Cain, and Susan Gfroerer

“NASP Member State of Practice for Work With Sexual Minority Youth”
Lisa Kilanowski-Press

“Transgendered Youth in and Era of Increased LGBQ Awareness”
Lisa Kilanowski-Press and Katherine Jones

“Evidence-Based Interventions for Secondary Students With ADHD”
Brandon Schultz, Steven Evans, and Kathryn Van Eck

The book was coedited with Dr. Steven Feifer, a graduate from the IUP doctoral School Psychology program. Feifer was the recipient of the School Psychologist of the Year award bestowed by the National Association of School Psychologists at the recent convention in February 2009.

Rattan wrote a chapter in the book titled “Psychopharmacology, Depression, and Alternative Treatment Modalities,” which highlighted the psychopharmacological hypotheses and clinical approaches used to treat depression and other emotional disorders. Rattan also coauthored the chapter “School Achievement, Neuropsychological Constructs, and Emotional Disorders.” The focus of this chapter examined brain-behaviors relationships associated with achievement and emotional problems. The text can be referenced at the School Neuropsych Press website.

Through his attendance at this conference, Dr. Runge will obtain collaborative and mentoring support for his research; discuss important issues relevant to the application of research to education; and develop professional relationships for diverse networks of research, resulting in more opportunities for research and publication. The conference will be held August 4 and 5, 2009, in Toronto, Canada, preceding the 2009 American Psychological Association’s Annual Conference.

The KAPE Award process is open to all organizations in business, education, health care, government, and nonprofit sectors. The process is based on the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Criteria, a proven system for assessing and improving organizational performance. At the end of the process, applicant organizations receive recognition, but the real value comes from the comprehensive, action-oriented feedback report that details each organization’s strengths and opportunities for improvement.

The focus of this presentation was on the statewide initiative in Pennsylvania to develop collaborative efforts between schools, mental health providers, communities, and families to promote positive, proactive approaches to addressing student behavior within school environments. The presentation highlighted schools involved in the pilot project and the positive outcomes their students and staff have experienced. Additionally, the presenters addressed efforts by the Pennsylvania state leadership team to expand the project into other communities and schools.

Response to Intervention in Iowa and Pennsylvania: A Comparison of Models will bring together national leaders in the RtI movement from Iowa and Pennsylvania in presentation and discussion of RtI implementation efforts in the two states.

From Iowa, David Tilly and Randy Allison will present their pioneering efforts to establish RtI on a statewide basis over a course of two decades. From Pennsylvania, Edward Shapiro and Joseph Kovaleski will share their work with Pennsylvania RtI efforts and share the results of the statewide pilot program.

For registration information call 717-238-2417. This event is sponsored by the Association of School Psychologists of Pennsylvania and the IUP Department of Educational and School Psychology.