Implementor Spotlight – Grainger County

Grainger County Schools leadership is busy planting seeds that will lead to growth within schools and facilitate the best possible support for their students, teachers, families, and community. Key to this shift in direction was identifying leaders ready and willing to make significant changes in the district and coordinate efforts to align RTI2-A + RTI2-B.  

Ginny McElhaney and Maura Bishop are serving as Co-District Coordinators, working with the members of their district leadership team to bring about meaningful change in Grainger County Schools. Their District Leadership, while conducting the District Capacity Assessment—Tennessee, determined that they needed two District Coordinators who could share in this meaningful work. As Co-District Coordinators, Maura and Ginny collaborate to assist school leaders in developing aligned frameworks in Grainger County. They actively engage with the Tennessee Tiered Supports Center to collaboratively plan district-level meetings, school-level learning sessions, and district-wide professional development that promotes sustainability and capacity building among all key collaborators.

Grainger County Schools has a history of implementing PBIS practices.  When a strong foundational understanding was established, our training focuses shifted to other areas of need in our district.  We eventually began drifting away from utilizing PBIS practices with fidelity. Collaborating with Tennessee TSC helped shift our thought process to achieving a common goal. School teams are now incorporating behavior and academic strengths and weaknesses in monthly data team meetings.  Tennessee TSC has been integral in helping us recognize areas where we can consolidate resources and combine behavior and academic initiatives.  Our collaboration with Tennessee TSC and utilizing their systems of support has enabled Grainger County Schools to effectively improve our implementation of RTI2-A + RTI2-B practices. 
Ginny McElhaney and Maura Bishop

District Coordinators, Grainger County Schools