School Capacity Building

School Needs

• What do the school-level data patterns (e.g., reading, SEB, attendance) suggest might be areas to consider building capacity in related to MTSS?
• In what areas are staff expressing a need for students or for staff development? If you’re unsure, a survey or focus group might be a great place to start!

School Fit

• What other initiatives is the district or school currently implementing? How might implementation of MTSS in particular content areas complement this work, conflict with this work, or over-extend staff? If you’re unsure, an Initiative Inventory could be a great place to start!
• How does MTSS fit with the district’s continuous improvement plan?
• What is the school’s vision for MTSS implementation in one year? Five years?
• How does the implementation of MTSS fit with family and community values?

School Capacity

• What resources (e.g., FTE, personnel, money) can be allocated to MTSS? 
• What administrative policies/procedures or organizational changes must be made to support the implementation of MTSS?
• Is district leadership knowledgeable about and in support of MTSS? 
  • If district leadership is supportive of MTSS and desires to scale up implementation across the district, consider having district leaders visit the District Capacity Building page of the website.
• Is school leadership knowledgeable about and in support of MTSS?
• Do staff have the capacity to implement practices and collect data to inform improvements to the system?
• What support for MTSS implementation does the district or ISD offer?

The MiMTSS TA Center offers many options to fit the varying needs, capacities, and goals of schools across the state. These options can all be classified under the categories of systems, practices, and data.

Systems 

To install, implement, sustain, and scale-up MTSS implementation, systems are essential. Systems, which include establishing leadership involvement, ensuring organizational environments are set up for success, and developing staff competency, increase the likelihood that MTSS practices can be used effectively. Several factors must be in place for systems to be developed. These include:

• Support from leadership
• Teaming structures
• FTE and time allocations for individuals  to participate in training and coaching activities to fulfill their roles (e.g., coaches, team members, teaching staff)
• Access to data systems to support continuous improvement

The MiMTSS TA Center provides training opportunities for teams and staff that wish to develop the systems necessary to support the school-level implementation of MTSS. Find our recommended training sequence and corresponding readiness activities:

Practices

In order for programs and practices to be implemented well across a district, they must meet the criteria for usability. According to the National Implementation Research Network, “It is necessary to have sufficient detail about the evidence-based practice so that you can train staff and administrators to use it competently; measure the use of the practice with fidelity or integrity; and replicate it across all of your implementing sites such as classrooms, schools, and districts (Fixsen et al., 2013; Metz, 2016). The following criteria need to be in place to ensure that your evidence-based practice is usable:

• Clear description of the program
• Clear program components that define the program
• Operational definitions of program components
• Practical fidelity assessment”

The MiMTSS TA Center provides learning opportunities to support educators' use of literacy and social-emotional behavioral evidence-based practices. Schools should assess their needs, capacity, and goals in order to determine which innovations are the best fit for their context. View our MTSS Practices Training Options to find upcoming offerings:

Data

School teams collect and use data to assess the fidelity and outcomes of MTSS practices. Fidelity assessments measure how well a practice, program, or strategy is implemented. Outcome data measures the impact of implementation in identified focus areas (e.g., reading outcomes, behavior outcomes). Schools also use data to support district continuous improvement. 

• To assess fidelity to the reading components of an MTSS framework, the Reading Tiered Fidelity Inventory (R-TFI) can be used. It is essential that these assessments are administered by a trained facilitator. Training resources can be found on EduPaths.
• To assess fidelity to the reading components of an MTSS framework, the School-wide PBIS Tiered Fidelity Inventory (SWPBIS TFI) can be used. It is essential that these assessments are administered by a trained facilitator. Training resources can be found on EduPaths.
• Various measures can be used to assess the impact of implementation on student outcomes. Access resources related to measures supported by the MiMTSS TA Center.
• Districts and schools can use Michigan’s Continuous Improvement Process (or MICIP) to guide their continuous improvement efforts. Resources to support the integration of district and school MTSS efforts within the MICIP platform can be found in the MICIP drop-down on the District Capacity Building page.

The MiMTSS TA Center has received many requests to develop a menu of options to support the development and use of staff learning plans. This Staff Learning Plans resource can be leveraged to support the general ongoing learning needs of staff, as well as the learning needs of newly hired staff. The learning plans include both live and on-demand learning opportunities. View the Staff Learning Plans to see learning plan options broken down by staff role: