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BrainSTEPS

BrainSTEPS - Strategies Teaching Educators, Parents, and Students. A Brain Injury School Re-Entry Consulting Program

BrainSTEPS is a statewide consultation program that was created in 2016 and is supported by the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) with funding from the MINDSOURCE Brain Injury Network within the Colorado Department of Human Services. After a brain injury, many students have lingering effects that impact their ability to be successful in many areas of their lives, including school. Thompson School District has had a Brain Injury/BrainSTEPS team for over 20 years. Our multidisciplinary team is trained to support district staff working with students who have brain injuries. 

Brain Injury Impacts

The impact of brain injuries can present in many different ways and each injury is unique. 

  • Physical: Pain, Fatigue, Headaches, Medication Side-Effects, etc. 
  • Foundational Cognitive Abilities: Attention, Inhibition, Processing Speed, Sensory/Motor, Memory
  • Language: Receptive, Expressive, Speech, Social Pragmatics
  • Verbal and Visual-Spatial Processing
  • Executive Functions
  • Reasoning, Problem Solving, Judgement
  • Behavioral, Social Emotional, and Mental Health

TSD BrainSTEPS Mission

The Thompson School District BrainSTEPS team consults and provides resources to schools and families to support students with brain injuries by referral, evaluation, identification, intervention, and transition support throughout their educational careers. 

Types of Brain Injuries

  • Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI)
  • Concussions: Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries
  • Non-Traumatic Brain Injuries
  • Congenital Brain Injuries

Brain Injury (BI)

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Brain dysfunction caused by an outside force, usually a blow to the head.

Traumatic brain injuries are categorized by the severity of the initial blow: mild TBI, moderate TBI, or severe TBI.

Non-Traumatic Brain Injury (nTBI)

Brain dysfunction caused by an internal event

Includes things like stroke, anoxia, tumor, infection, aneurysm, metabolic disorders, or toxic exposure

Other Commonly Used Brain Injury Terms

Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)

Acquired Brain Injury refers to any brain injury that acquired after birth, i.e. not congenital.

Concussion

Concussion is mostly used to describe mild TBI. It is not used consistently and is often misunderstood.

What does the BrainSTEPS team do?

  • Consult with school staff and provide strategies or resources for student-specific needs
  • Perform observations in the school environment
  • Gather medical history for a student with a suspected or identified brain injury
  • Communicate with parents and share resources
  • Provide education, support and resources for the student with an injury, parents, and school staff
  • Help the school team determine if the student has a brain injury 
  • Provide guidance on using the TBI or OHI eligibility categories for an initial or re-evaluation related to a brain injury
  • Attend IEP, 504, or transition meetings to provide input on ideas for accommodations, explain the consequences of brain injuries, and any other information as requested
  • Provide training for school staff on understanding and supporting students with brain injuries
  • Participate in transition planning as the student returns to school after hospitalization
  • Assist as needed for return to learn accommodations for mild, moderate, and severe brain injuries
  • Our team follows a student with a brain injury through graduation and/or transition programs

BrainSTEPS Members

  • Occupational Therapists
  • School Psychologists
  • Speech Language Therapists
  • Nurses
  • Counselors
  • Social Workers
  • Teachers/Academic Experts
  • Early Childhood Professionals
  • District Level Support Experts
  • Administrators

 

Click HERE to refer a student to Thompson School District BrainSTEPS