ALPENA — Hillman Elementary School staff are doing whatever it takes to keep kids who might otherwise be suspended in school.

School officials are using restorative practices to keep students in school instead of punishing them with suspensions, and teachers are trained to recognize student behavior that needs support, according to Principal Pam Rader.

Restorative Justice Interventionist Carrie Sobeck said students are sent to her classroom — the Whatever it Takes classroom — instead of going home for behavioral issues. The WIT classroom is designed to help students mediate their problems and strengthen their social- emotional skills.

“They come to the WIT room and they can have a nice quiet place to do their work, and then, in that process, we then talk to them about their behavior and we do lessons with them,” she said.

For example, Sobeck said maybe a kindergartener is hitting another kindergartener and they don’t know they can’t just hit somebody. She said they would do lessons teaching hands are not for hitting.

Sobeck said if students have a disagreement and they can’t get past it, she will act as a mediator and they will talk about their feelings, why they feel that way, and work through it together.

“It restores the confidence in the student, it restores a relationship maybe with a student and a teacher, a relationship with students — their peers,” she said.

But the room isn’t only used to help students with behavioral problems. It is also used when students need a break, someone to talk to, help with homework or if a teacher wants to reward a student with a break.

Rader said the program started about four years ago, following a training where they discussed restorative practices.

Rader said, as of last school year, discipline at the school has decreased by 80% since the program was implemented.

Recently, the room is being used to help students deal with emotional problems related to the coronavirus pandemic and who just need a safe place to go.

“Maybe they’re feeling overwhelmed in the classroom, and so they want to take a little break, so they’ll ask if they can come down here, in my room, and they’ll sit and they’ll just talk about their feelings,” she said.

Sobeck said she works with them to deal with their emotions and build self-confidence.

Crystal Nelson can be reached at 989-358-5687 or cnelson@thealpenanews.com.

CLARIFICATION: The Whatever It Takes room at Hillman Elementary School can be used to reward students for good behavior and to advance their learning. Student Robert Weiland was in the room to accelerate his learning. That information was unclear in a provided photo accompanying an earlier version of this story.