News File Photo The Alpena-Montmorency-Alcona Education Service district main office building is seen in this picture taken on Jan. 1, 2024.

ALPENA — At the Alpena Public Schools board meeting Monday night, Alpena-Montmorency-Alcona Educational Service District (AMA ESD) Superintendent Justin Gluesing spoke to the board about the SOAR partnership at Ella White Elementary School.

SOAR is an acronym used at Ella White to enforce positive behavior.

The SOAR room is primarily a behavior support classroom, Gluesing said in a phone interview.

Students who use the SOAR room have Individualized Education Programs. A student’s IEP will determine whether the SOAR classroom is suitable for their particular needs. When a student first starts in the SOAR room, most of their time will be spent there. Once staff determine that a student would benefit from more time in a general education setting, they will help the student make that transition.

This is the second full year of the program at APS, Gluesing said. Currently, only APS students are able to use the SOAR classroom, but Gluesing hopes to expand that opportunity to the other districts in the AMA ESD.

Gluesing is seeking the approval of the boards of education at Hillman Community Schools, Atlanta Community Schools, and Alcona Community Schools, as well as APS, to bring the SOAR room into AMA’s fold. If all the school districts vote to approve this initiative, they will all be able to utilize the SOAR room.

The AMA would be responsible for staffing and oversight of the program, Gluesing said. It would function similarly to the Pied Piper school.

“It’s a similar sort of relationship in terms of how we would transition to take over the SOAR room program at Ella White,” Gluesing said during Monday night’s board meeting.

Gluesing also hopes to renovate the SOAR room.

“We hope to evaluate and consider some options for renovating the space,” Gluesing said. “Some of you I know have visited Pied Piper, where we’ve gone through a renovation of that space over this past summer… we see that there is a potential opportunity for that as well for the existing classroom where the SOAR room is and the adjacent spaces nearby.

“I do want to extend my thanks to Dr. Rabbideau, and of course Stacy Moors for all of their work, along with Ashley behind the scenes,” Gluesing said. “…Provided we get all the approvals, we’ve agreed really to work hand in hand as we work through this transition.”

APS Superintendent Dave Rabbideau thanked Gluesing for being responsive to the needs of APS.

“Prior to you being there, there’s always been a misalignment between AMA and APS, and I just remember saying ‘I’m excited to have Justin be taking over AMA, because he understands APS,'” Rabbideau said.

“I’ve looked forward to a new era, so to speak, and really thank you because you have been very responsive to the needs of not only APS, but all the other districts,” Rabbideau said. “And this is a huge step forward in our relationship with partnering together on a program that is desperately needed, not just in APS but all across AMA and well beyond those boundaries as well, so thank you.”