Positive Schools >About Positive Schools

May Institute's Positive Schools is a unique, research-based, K-12 behavior support program. Positive Schools fully integrates proven behavior management techniques with pro-social skills development and academic instruction.

A consultative, whole-school model, the Positive Schools program provides teachers, administrators, and school support staff with a framework for positive behavior support. The program is grounded in empirically proven research and best practices endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education and eminent scholars in the field of discipline and student behavior. We offer both on-site and off-site consultation, training, program evaluation, and monitoring. Parental participation is encouraged.

Combining positive behavior support with teaching and learning enables both teachers and students to stay on-task and focused on academics. By freeing resources typically devoted to discipline, Positive Schools techniques enable administrators to leverage existing professional and curricular resources to achieve strong academic outcomes. Effective teaching practices create more positive environments and outcomes for all participants: teachers report greater job satisfaction, parents are more supportive, and students achieve more academic success.

Research shows that transforming school discipline from the traditionally reactive, punitive, and exclusionary practices to ones focused on prevention can dramatically improve school climate and academic engagement.

The Positive Schools program has been implemented in 14 locations across the country, including schools in San Francisco, Wichita, and Baltimore. Many of these schools are in large, urban districts in need of significant improvement in academic and school climate. Positive Schools training and consultation services are typically funded through a variety of sources including Title I, IDEA, and Safe and Drug Free Schools. On a state and/or local level, Positive Schools may be funded through special education and professional development funds, corporate grants, private foundations, and community sponsorships.