MSDBSD addresses reports of Mat-Su Day School closure

Parents of students attending the Mat-Su Day School in the Matanuska Susitna Borough School District (MSBSD) recently took to social media regarding reports that the school was closing, and leaving confusion that parents would need to find educational options for students with high behavioral and emotional needs.

The Mat-Su Day School is an alternative school designed to meet the needs of Special Education students from elementary to post-secondary levels. The school offers behavioral, social and emotional learning in a therapeutic environment with an emphasis on learning.

Jillian Morrissey, the Chief Communications Officer for the MSBSD, said the school was not closing and a statement was put out on the District’s Student Support webpage that said, in part:

“The Office of Student Support has recently implemented modifications to their Behavior Support Program (BSP) district-wide, aimed at enhancing student performance, minimizing exclusionary discipline measures, and integrating elements that will increase alignment to national guidelines.”

The statement goes on to say that research shows that students show greater improvement when they learn alongside their peers in mainstream settings instead of being secluded from their classmates and group environments.

Recently, the Anchorage School District announced that it was launching a new program it hopes to address behavior issues while keeping them in the classroom.

The program, called Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS), is designed to give students and staff the tools they need to avoid many discipline problems while keeping students learning in the classroom, and it is being implemented at 10 district schools this year, from elementary to high schools.

MSBSD says that the placement is temporary in nature and that the Mat-Su Day School will continue to offer intensified behavior modification services for students on an individualized basis as needed by the school team.

For more information, please call the MSBSD Office of Student Support Services (907) 746-9221, or visit www.matsuk12.us/domain/114