Support and Resources

Student Support Services

We recognize that students have diverse needs and are impacted by a variety of factors. Deans, counselors and learning support specialists work as a team to provide student support in the areas of academic counseling, social emotional counseling and learning support.

List of 2 items.

K – Grade 8

The mission of the K – 8 Student Support Department is to inspire and support students’ academic, social and emotional development through a safe, equitable and accessible environment. The Student Support Department includes learning support specialists and counselors.
SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL AND ETHICAL LEARNING
Students’ social, emotional and ethical learning (SEEL) is supported throughout the school day in various ways. SEEL guides curriculum choices and classroom instruction and is often integrated in core subjects, as well as middle-school advisory activities. Counselors are available to support teachers by providing targeted classroom lessons focused on specific affective skills.

LEARNING SUPPORT
Students can arrange conferences with teachers, chaplains, counselors, deans, and principals. Additional support services may be set up for students on an individual basis. These include, but are not limited to, directed study halls, an invitation to participate in the Learning Strategies course, a summer Bridge course for entering 9th graders, and/or one-to-one mentorship and coaching with selected teachers. Additional help is available in areas such as the Peer Learning Center, the Science Center Open Lab and some study halls.

COUNSELING
Counselors collaborate and consult with administration, school staff, teachers, psychologists and families to provide general guidance and faculty support to help students be successful at school. Counselors encourage, intervene and advocate for students experiencing personal, academic and developmental difficulties.

Support services include: counseling, consultation, crisis intervention and social and emotional education. Attention is paid to the sensitivity of the content of counseling conversations. Depending on the situation, legal and ethical requirements may demand that information be revealed to prevent harm to the student.
Academy

Students are supported in their learning journey by a number of caring adults, including their class deans, advisory teachers and faculty in the Support and Wellness Department. The department is comprised of teachers, counselors and a licensed psychologist equipped to support student needs.

SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL AND ETHICAL LEARNING
The SWell department also offers a variety of courses and experiences aimed to build resiliency skills, emotional regulation, mindfulness and healthy choices. These include, but are not limited to Chapel, the Advisory Program and the SURF courses (Standing Up and Reaching Forward). The emphasis of the SURF curriculum is building Social Emotional competencies such as personal leadership and moral action, empathy and embracing challenges.

LEARNING SUPPORT
Students can arrange conferences with teachers, chaplains, counselors, deans, principals and the president. Additional support services may be set up for students on an individual basis. These include, but are not limited to, directed study halls, an invitation to participate in the Learning Strategies course, a summer Bridge course for entering 9th graders, and/or one-to-one mentorship and coaching with selected teachers. Additional help is available in areas such as the Peer Learning Center, the Science Center Open Lab and some study halls

COUNSELING
Counselors collaborate and consult with administration, school staff, teachers, psychologists and families to provide general guidance and faculty support to help students be successful at school. Counselors encourage, intervene and advocate for students experiencing personal, academic and developmental difficulties.

Support services include: counseling, consultation, crisis intervention and social and emotional education. Attention is paid to the sensitivity of the content of counseling conversations. Depending on the situation, legal and ethical requirements may demand that information be revealed to prevent harm to the student.

Psychological Health and Safety

Students may present troublesome behaviors or feelings that could cause administrators to require an assessment of a student by a mental health professional. This may include requiring the student to complete an approved psychological or psychiatric evaluation by a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist.

The school reserves the right to review procedures and make determinations about the degree to which assessments conducted by mental health practitioners satisfy the school’s requirements.

As a condition of continued enrollment, parents may be required to sign waivers allowing psychologists or psychiatrists to consult fully with the school.

Administrators may also require verification of cooperation with a treatment plan developed by a psychologist or psychiatrist as an additional condition of continued enrollment.

Students required to complete assessments regarding their risk of harm to self or others may be asked to stay home (absences will be excused) from school until their evaluations have been completed and, when required, appropriate mental health treatment has been implemented.

These students will be permitted to return to school when the administration determines a return is appropriate.

In making this determination, the administration may require parents or guardians to sign releases authorizing treatment providers to consult with the school. Meetings with school mental health professionals, administrators, parents, and student may be required. A return to school may be conditional on cooperation with expectations determined on a case-by-case basis.

In extremely rare circumstances, the school may place a student off roll when the family does not cooperate with medical/psychological treatment or when treatment is ineffective. The administration will evaluate, in a consultation with medical professionals it chooses, whether the student’s medical and/or psychological condition precludes consistent, appropriate participation in school by the student.

Administrators may require drug testing at the family’s expense for a student at any time. The results of the test will be for the family and administrators, and will be used by the school for counseling and retention purposes.

Community Care Response Team

The Community Care Response Team (CCRT) is responsible for the management of cases related to allegations of abuse and harassment involving members of the Punahou School community. The CCRT is comprised of school principals, deans, faculty members, counselors and other school administrators, including a Community Care Liaison (CCL).

During the process of addressing a report of abuse, the CCRT will ensure that the victim’s safety is paramount and will provide or make referrals for other types of support as necessary. The team also involves the student’s family as the first line of response in dealing with sensitive matters.

The CCRT is responsible for:

Student Safety: The CCRT will determine if any immediate emergency, medical or legal assistance is required or requested by the student. The CCRT will determine if measures are needed to separate the student and alleged offender and, if so, implement those measures.
Student Support and Accommodations: The CCL will establish contact with the student and their family to offer support services that may be appropriate to their situation, and keep the student and family apprised of the status of the school’s response to the report.
External Reporting: The CCRT will ensure all mandated reports have been made to the appropriate public agencies.
Confidentiality: The CCRT will make every effort to maintain the confidentiality of the report and subsequent investigations – notwithstanding mandatory reporting laws and civil requirements for disclosure – and limit disclosure to those persons with a “need-to-know.”

Community Care Liaison

The Community Care Liaison (CCL) acts as a support, point of contact, resource and advocate for students who report sexual abuse or harassment. The CCL assists students during the course of the CCRT’s response and conclusion of their review and any investigation that is conducted. The CCL also:

Takes appropriate measures to protect and assist the student who reports abuse or harassment, including coordinating with local law enforcement and court systems
Makes referrals for or facilitates professional school and/or public resources for the student who may need medical or psychological services
Informs the student of Punahou’s internal and public mandated reporting obligations
Advises students and their families that Punahou may conduct an investigation into their report — notwithstanding the student’s desire to participate
Advises students and their families of their right to pursue criminal charges against offenders in cases of child abuse or sexual assault
Educates the student on the CCRT’s responsibilities and procedures to address their report
Keeps the student and their family informed of CCRT actions and results
Informs the student about what constitutes retaliation and how to report it
Documents actions taken to support and communicate with the student and their family

Safety and Privacy Accommodations

The CCRT and CCL assist with providing certain accommodations from Punahou School to address safety or privacy concerns, the impact of trauma or stress or scheduling conflicts that arise as a result of judicial or criminal proceedings. Punahou School will ensure that such accommodations are provided where appropriate. Common accommodation requests include:

Excused absences
Extensions on assignments
Retroactive or late drops
Adjustments in schedules or locations
Class reassignment
Request for no contact between student reporting the incident and responding party