By MATT LINDSEY

POTSDAM – Potsdam Central School is developing a policy to help prevent and manage explosive and dangerous outbursts by students.

In an effort to “keep everyone safe and manage student behaviors,” Potsdam Central School Superintendent Joann Chambers says three staff members received Therapeutic Crisis Intervention System for Schools (TCIS) training last month.

Those attending week-long training were Sarah Baker, A.A. Kingston Middle School psychologist; Bruce Bogart, primary special education teacher; and Marc Porcaro, elementary counselor.

This group can now serve as a crisis response team.

The plan is to provide training for all district staff in de-escalation of situations where students are agitated.

If necessary, staff can be trained to safely restrain children when all other interventions have been tried and have proven ineffective in stopping dangerous behavior. Restraint would only be used by trained staff members.

All staff including teachers, bus drivers and cafeteria workers will be trained Oct. 6 and 7 on how to avoid conflict with students and curb the situation, she said.

These include a four and a half hour training that focuses on positive student relationships and the conflict cycle. Turn-key trainers can also provide a five-day training which includes de-escalation, restraint and recovery. To continue to be certified in TCIS, staff need to attend a follow-up training and be recertified every two years.

Chambers said there were a couple incidents at the elementary school last year where students were distraught and there were concerns within the district that they did not have the right tools to handle the situation.

Even though a component of the program involves safe, physical restraint, the goal is to never us it, Chambers said.

The goal of restraint is physical safety for all.

If restraint is used, it will only be by trained staff members.

“It’s a last resort … to keep the child safe from injury and self harm,” she said.

For now, no students will be restrained, Chambers said. Plans are to discuss a formal policy and parents and the public will be able to weigh in once the board committee begins discussion of formalizing a plan.

Trained staff meets for monthly meetings to review any taught physical restraints, and include rotating topics monthly.

TCIS was originally developed by Cornell in the 1980s and i