Special education teachers, bus drivers and paraprofessionals across Alpine School District completed a summer-long crisis prevention certification, giving families of students with behavioral needs a new layer of trained support when classes resume Wednesday, Aug. 19.

The district ran multiple Safety-Care training sessions over the summer, requiring key staff to finish 12 hours of hands-on instruction in de-escalation and safe physical positioning, according to the district. Certified employees must recertify every year.

"It provides proven evidence-based strategies to our faculty and staff so they can effectively and appropriately support students that are in crisis," Royd Darrington, Alpine School District's director of special education, said in a statement published Tuesday, Aug. 11.

The program targets staff most likely to encounter acute behavioral crises, defined as moments of severe emotional dysregulation, property destruction or physical aggression that threaten a student's safety or the safety of others. Certified roles include school and district administrators, special education teachers, bus drivers, paraprofessionals and Board Certified Behavior Analysts.

What the training looks like

Participants role-play scenarios where they practice de-escalation cues, refine vocal tone and rehearse safe physical positioning. In one exercise, trainees learn to spot early warning signs like fidgeting or pacing and respond with supportive verbal prompts before behavior escalates.

The curriculum emphasizes that an adult's own demeanor, tone and body language directly shape how a crisis unfolds.

Rex Brimhall, the district's director of transportation west, said the training changed his perspective. His biggest takeaway, he said: prevention and de-escalation are always the primary goals, and challenging behaviors are often a form of communication.

Why this program, and why now

District leaders chose the Safety-Care curriculum, developed by QBS and used by more than 3,700 organizations nationally, because it aligns with Utah state statutes governing restraint and seclusion in schools. The program reports aggregate outcomes across participating organizations including a 70% decrease in seclusion hours and a 58% decrease in restraint hours, according to QBS.

Alpine School District served 10,567 students with Individualized Education Programs during the 2022-23 school year, up from 9,842 the year before, according to a 2024 Herald Extra report. The district enrolls roughly 86,645 students across 91 schools, including Lone Peak High School in Highland, Skyridge High School and Lehi High School in Lehi, and Deerfield School in Cedar Hills.

The training is system-wide, covering all schools rather than only specialized programs.

Kindergartners begin Tuesday, Aug. 25.