Project Overview
This 5-year randomized controlled trial will recruit 320 students with emotional and behavioral challenges from Lane County schools to examine the efficacy of the Students with Involved Families and Teachers (SWIFT) Program. Specifically, the study will investigate whether SWIFT might be efficacious to improve students’ prosocial skills and emotion and behavior regulation and to improve home-school communication and the use of positive parenting practices for families. SWIFT takes a preventive approach to support students in public school settings who are at risk for placement in more restrictive school settings. The SWIFT Program includes (1) parent support to promote parent engagement and collaboration with the school, to promote study routines in the home, and to coach positive parenting practices; (2) behavioral skills coaching for students to build social skills, emotion and behavior regulation skills, communication skills, and study skills; (3) coordination of the intervention elements and collaboration with the school; and (4) behavioral progress monitoring to identify intervention targets and monitor progress in response to the SWIFT Program.
The SWIFT Program began in 2011 with a development project for an intervention to support student transitions from day-treatment school settings to public school settings. SWIFT is currently being implemented in collaboration with the OSLC Developments, Inc. (ODI) Clinic: www.odiclinic.org/swift/.
Year Project Began: 2019Funder: Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education
Principal Investigator
Rohanna Buchanan, Ph.D.
Oregon Social Learning Center
Active Research Projects
Primary Research and Clinical Interests
Dr. Buchanan has been with OSLC since 2000. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Oregon. Dr. Buchanan’s research focuses on the inclusion of families and behavioral data to support youth in school, particularly during difficult transitions. Her current work targets behavioral health supports for students in school settings. Dr. Buchanan also works with Dr. Chamberlain on the dissemination of the KEEP intervention. Dr. Buchanan’s other research interests include measurement of implementation fidelity, instrument development to measure responsiveness to behavioral interventions, and measure psychometrics. Prior to receiving her Ph.D., Buchanan served as a clinician on the GIRLS project with OSLC and helped to develop girl-specific adaptations for the Treatment Foster Care Oregon model and teen-specific adaptations for KEEP.